Omiai
by librastar
Summary: The war is over, but darkness has fallen on the Shinobi Alliance. Amid a world of blood, treachery and lies, Hatake Kakashi had sworn to give his body, his life and his future for Konoha since the day he had first taken up the hitaiate. But when Danzo orders him to be married to the Mizukage as a political offering, is he ready to give up his heart as well? Full summary inside.
1. Prologue: Blood is Thicker than Lies

**Omiai**

**Disclaimer:** As always, I can't claim credit for the wonderful world of Naruto because all characters, places and references are the copyright of the genius that is Masashi Kishimoto, and everything else is simply a figment and work of my imagination.

**Summary**: The war is over, the sun has set but darkness has fallen on the Shinobi Alliance. Trouble is brewing and as old grudges and new enemies are made, Konoha soon finds itself in the middle of a web of dangerous schemes and dark secrets of its own making.

Amid a world of blood, treachery and lies, Hatake Kakashi had sworn to give his body, his life and his future for Konoha since the day he had first taken up the hitai-ate. But when Danzo orders Kakashi to be married to the Godaime Mizukage as a political peace offering, is he ready to give up his heart as well?

Various pairings: NaruHina MeiKakaSaku slight AU set Post-Shinobi World War Arc.

**A/N:** The Japanese word 'omiai' can be literally translated into 'arranged marriage'.

A few things to note before we proceed: As this story is set post the Fourth Ninja War, I have taken certain liberties combined with what has been on-going in the manga so far as to predicting the outcome of the war while making several changes of my own to fit the storyline. I started writing this quite some time ago; so consider it accurate up to about events just after the end of the Five Kage Summit Arc, with some bits from the on-going Shinobi World War Arc thrown in.

Lastly, this chapter is dedicated to Neon Anything, for giving me that special bit of inspiration and encouragement I needed to push this out of the front door.

**Prologue: Blood is Thicker than Lies**

_Hatred._

_Revenge._

_Betrayal_.

Two lone figures stood facing each other, their silhouettes stark against the bloody sunset. Mountains of fallen comrades lay scattered around them, a grim reminder of the price that had been paid for the sake of peace. A few feet away, a spiral orange mask lay forgotten by the wayside, a large crack running through its centre.

_Courage._

_Camaraderie._

_Resistance._

A slight chill swept through the deserted battlefield, making Sakura nauseous with the metallic stench of blood and gore. Closing her eyes, she could still see the vacant stares of comrades who had fought and fallen beside her, kunais through their chests and senbon piercing their throats. They didn't even have time to be surprised that their time had come so fast.

The sudden crackle of electricity sent a shock through her semi-consciousness, followed by the whistling and rippling of the surrounding air.

_No_, she tried to cry out but no sound came out of her throat. She tried to reach out to block them but her fingers only grasped thin air.

_No!_ But her leg muscles weighed of steel, and they didn't move of their own accord. Waves of fogginess were clouding her senses as Sakura fought desperately to summon the chakra she needed to jolt her nervous system awake. But the fighting had long since drained all her reserves, the last of her chakra expended to heal a wounded Iwa shinobi.

A long-forgotten memory flashed through her mind's eye: onyx eyes burning with hatred, blue eyes full of hurt, the piercing scream of the young girl as she leaped forward blindly into the melee…

A familiar raucous chirping broke the silence of the dead, its discordant shrieks only partially deafened by the roaring of the wind as the two figures began hurtling towards each other, the iridescent glow of their individual jutsus lighting up the darkening sky.

Her throat ached and burned with a silent scream that never left, but in the end it was proving too much for her. As she felt her last threads of consciousness ebb away, her final thoughts were of an overwhelming sense of regret.

_Forgive me- Naruto, Sasuke-kun. The one time you needed me to hold you back, I wasn't strong enough to be there for you. But maybe you were both always too far ahead for me to ever catch up._

_I'm sorry. _

….

It was over before it had even begun.

As the crackle of blue lightning dissipated, Naruto instantly released his Rasenshuriken and darted forwards. He managed to catch the raven haired nin as he stumbled, blood streaming from both his eyes.

"Naruto." His voice was trembling as much as he was.

Turning his sky-blue eyes to meet his former teammate's, the blonde felt a sense of déjà vu as they locked gazes. The tremor in the Uchiha's voice was unmissable, but he held his gaze steadily.

As children in the Academy, Naruto and Sasuke had first locked horns in what neither had envisioned was to be a rivalry to match Madara and the First's when a six-year old Naruto had borrowed Sasuke's blue crayon without his permission.

The young Uchiha had glared at him.

Naruto had glared right back.

An eight-year old Uchiha Sasuke had just been remonstrated by Iruka for refusing to make the Seal of Reconciliation after winning a mock-spar with Naruto.

The young Uchiha had glared at him.

Naruto never forgot that glare.

Hatred; pure and unadulterated. How eyes that were so lifeless and empty could yield so much emotion was beyond him, but he knew one thing.

It scared him.

Even close to death, those same eyes never seemed to have lost that raging fire of revenge. But there was something more that seemed to burn behind that mask. A flicker of…regret? Peace? Acceptance?

"W...why?" he choked out. "Why did you come back? I could have handled Madara myself, you didn't have to…!"

And just like before, Sasuke closed his eyes.

"Sasuke…!"

"Dobe. I'm not dying."

"Huh?"

"It's chakra exhaustion. OW!"

Naruto tried to wipe away the tears that were leaking out of his eyes as he pummelled the Uchiha's head playfully.

"Teme?"

"Hn?"

"Welcome home."

_Love._

_Forgiveness._

_Redemption._

…..

_Hyuuga Neji_

_Yamanaka Inoichi_

_Nara Shikaku_

Her fingers traced the slight depressions of the kanji delicately carved onto the marble surface, the texture smooth and cool beneath her fingertips. With the close of the Fourth Great Ninja War, so many new names had been added; they now ran all the way down the right side of the stone. So many fallen comrades, so many more friends to mourn.

_Duty._

_Honour._

_Sacrifice. _

And there it was. Sakura's fingers lightly glided over the characters engraved on the black marble.

_Senju Tsunade_

_Sakura! Until you tell me where you've hidden my sake, you and Shizune are fired!_

_Hah! You don't need to be the sharpest kunai in the pouch to make an S-class nin crumble at your feet; boobs, butt and a few paper bombs will do the trick!_

_Screw the elders; if Naruto wants to fight for Konoha then over my dead body will that boy be kept away from the battle!_

_I am the Fifth Hokage… You've trampled on our ancestors' treasure… their dream… And you will pay the price! As the Hokage, I will put a stop to you here and now!_

_Life is a gamble- you never know what hand you'll get but there's always the chance of an ace._

_Why do you want to become my apprentice?_

_I never want to be a hindrance to my team again. _

Shisou…!

Blindly grasping the black marble edges as the tears streamed uncontrollably down her cheeks, she gripped it tightly.

_The night of the Chuunin exams before her last match with some Suna kunoichi named Midori, Sakura was walking past The Three Ninken Friends pub when she heard a sudden roar of laughter erupt behind her. _

_Peeping through the grimy glass, she glimpsed a red-faced Tsunade clutching what looked to be an enormous glass of shiny brown liquid while a crowd of similarly inebriated male ninja surrounded her. _

_A burly blonde shinobi with the Akimichi symbol emblazoned on his shirt back chuckled as he swigged his drink. "My bet tomorrow's on that Hyuuga boy and that Midori from Suna. Great Katon techniques, and great pair of tits too!" The crowd howled uproariously again, as he mock-toasted them. "To great Katon techniques, and amazing Suna tits!" _

_Next to the door, a shaggy brown-haired shinobi coughed slightly, his senbon hanging crookedly from the edge of his mouth as he gulped his own cup of sake. "So gentlemen," Sakura vaguely remembered him being a proctor in her first Chuunin exam two years ago. "As of now, we have fifty bets for Hyuuga Neji, thirty bets for Midori of Suna and none for Rock Lee and Haruno Sakura. Any more takers?"_

"_Tsunade-sama!" The shinobi closest to the Hokage waved a stack of ryo under her nose. "I can't believe that even you bet on Midori of Suna winning tomorrow against your own apprentice."_

_Tears sprang to her eyes, as blades of hurt speared her heart. If even Tsunade didn't believe she could win tomorrow, who did?_

_The busty blonde Hokage laughed derisively, before chugging down the entire glass of brown liquid in an entire go. Wiping her mouth with her sleeve, she paused for a while before looking seriously at him. "You know Takeshi…all my life they've called me the Incredible Sucker because I've lost every single bet I've ever made. And you know what?" Smiling slightly, she bent down and poured herself another generous portion of Ginza shochu. _

"_I know my streak isn't going to end tomorrow."_

She cried harder.

"_How about the top branch, Neji? I don't want my wish to be obscured by Naruto's giant wish for a lifetime supply of ramen!"_

_From behind the lamppost, Sakura watched as the normally stoic Hyuuga cracked a small smile as he stood on his tiptoes, neatly tying the two pieces of red tanzaku papers to the topmost branch. "There, done. Now we can go and join the lantern-lighting down the river." _

_Laughing gaily, Tenten grabbed his arm. "Come on! Ino, Shikamaru and the others are already there!"_

_As the sounds of their laughter died on the wind, Sakura unclenched her fist. A crumpled piece of pink tanzaku paper fell out of her palm onto the ground, all creased and scrunched up. Like it had been chewed up and spit out. Unwanted. _

"_Not enjoying Tanabata then?"_

_The Hokage bent down and picked up Sakura's paper, gently smoothing out the creases as she handed it back to her apprentice. The pinkette hesitantly held out her hand._

_Tsunade looked up at the Wish Tree; a million strips of tanzaku paper- red, pink, purple, yellow, blue, weighed almost all of its available branches down. Even in a world so marked by tragedy; shinobi still found hope in wishing._

_Happiness. _

_Peace._

_Love._

_Watching another young couple hang their wishes on the ancient bamboo tree, she sighed a little wistfully. "Dan and I used to come here every festival and write our wishes on gold paper, since he always said that for wishes needed to shine as brightly as possible to reflect our burning hope. He'd fold them up into paper cranes and hang them on the topmost branch after that; give them wings so that they could take flight and come true." A sad chuckle escaped her. "After he died, I felt silly continuing the tradition so I just hung mine on the bottom branches. Out of sight."_

_Sakura found the words stuck in her throat more than Lee's bowler fringe clung to his forehead._

_Wishes are for children, not shinobi. We are merely observing tradition because it's customary._

"_He'll come back, Sakura." _

_She turned in surprise. Her mentor's face was partially obscured by the moon's shadow, but the normally grim line of her jaw was somewhat relaxed tonight. Softer._

"_Sumimasen, Tsunade-sama but everyone is waiting for you to light the first lantern." Shizune's apologetic tone sounded from behind them. _

"_Yosh. Let's get on with it, then we can go back to the drinking and festivities!"_

_Sakura watched them head off towards the bright lights dotting the eastern side of the village, down where the river was. Faint sounds of lively chatter and cheering could be heard. Smiling slightly, she quickly knotted the string around the nearest branch and after watching her pink strip flutter gently against the slight breeze; raced off after the two women towards the river._

_Bring Sasuke back._

She fisted her pink hair, pulling roughly and unseeingly as the tears continued to splash down.

"_Bad news Sakura-san- Hokage-sama is dead."_

"_No. No. Not shisou!"_

"_Hatake-taichou sent a retrieval squad to the Land of Iron. They found the Kage there, barely alive."_

"_Then shisou could still be…"_

"_No. Raikage-sama said that she used up the last of her chakra, her life force to save Kazekage-sama. Shizune-san went with them, she confirmed her death."_

"_No."_

"_Sakura!"_

"_Shisou!"_

"_Sakura!"_

"_SHISOU!"_

"_Sakura!"_

"Sakura!" She felt herself being shaken roughly. "Sakura."

Collapsing into his arms, he held her; gently ruffling her hair until her cries subsided, giving way to little gasps and chokes. Peeping through her tear-crusted lashes, a slight warmth spread through her as she glimpsed the familiar shock of silvery hair glinting in the soft morning sunlight.

Slowly releasing herself from his grip, she turned away, wiping away the last of the tear-tracks on her cheeks. Awkwardness at their sudden close contact flushed her neck red, but the grief continued gnawing at her, eating a black hole into the place where her heart had been.

Kakashi remained silent as he slowly dropped his arms to his side. Instead, he shifted a little to the left. His lone eye flickering to those three familiar names with practiced ease, he bowed his head.

Sakura watched him quietly, not wanting to intrude on his private moment of grief. Months ago, he had finally let slip that the reason he was always late for morning appointments was that he lost track of time visiting the memorial every morning.

Sakura used to complain to Ino that Kakashi must be having secret rendezvouses with some gorgeous lady friend he was probably keeping secret from Team Seven.

Or taking some aimless walk down the road of life as he had once had the gall to cheerily announce after showing up three hours late for a mission.

Now she knew that he was taking a painful trip down the path of regrets.

Kakashi was a man haunted by them. He never said, but Sakura had heard him fidgeting, moaning feverishly at night in his tent while Naruto and Sasuke snored on, oblivious to their sensei's nightmares.

He never spoke of the past, and he never talked about Obito.

But every morning, he still went to the Konoha Memorial and he always brought three bunches of flowers.

"She wouldn't have wanted this, Sakura."

His soft baritone barely registered in the midst of her turbulent thoughts. Kakashi's eyes were still fixed on the cenotaph, but he was clearly addressing her. "We both know Tsunade, and this is the way she would have wanted to go. Doing what she did best; saving lives and kicking ass. She gave her life gladly for Konoha, with no regrets."

"It's just so…sudden," Sakura mumbled, tears still leaking out of her eyes as she didn't even bother dabbing them. "Everything just hasn't sunk in yet. The war. Naruto. Sasuke. Madara. Obito. Shisou. Neji. I walk around Konoha as if I'm in a dream; where I'll just wake up and everything will be back to the way it is. But it's not. The village is destroyed, thousands of people, both shinobi and civilians are dead and shisou is…shisou is…" she hiccupped again. "Gone," she whispered.

He lifted his gaze to hers, and a tinge of sadness replaced the usual indifference in his lone charcoal eye. "You know, after Minato-sensei died, I thought that I was going to go crazy."

She glanced his way, but he had gone back to staring at the columns of names engraved on the memorial stone.

_She had forgotten that she wasn't alone. _

"Kakashi-sensei."

"Mmm?"

"Do you still… miss them?"

It was a stupid question; one that Sakura already knew the answer too, but she needed someone to say something, anything to give her the assurance that everything would get better with time. That it would stop hurting so badly.

And Kakashi heard the rest of the unspoken questions behind it.

Her emerald eyes met his charcoal black one, the red of the left Sharingan eye obscured by the hitai-ate pulled low over it.

"As much as if they had just gone yesterday. But it gets better." His lone eye creased a little. "And you tell yourself that they're in a better place than this one anyway."

Despite herself, she couldn't help raising her eyebrows. "For a moment there, you sounded just as disillusioned and jaded as Obito, sensei."

He closed his eye, and for one heart-stopping moment Sakura was scared that she'd gone too far.

Sakura had never asked what had actually happened between Kakashi and Obito during that final, terrible confrontation. By the time her silver-haired sensei had materialised back to the battlefield; bloody, wild-eyed and thoroughly depleted of chakra, the battle had already been won and Naruto was being hoisted onto the shoulders of a thousand exhausted, but exhilarated, cheering Allied Shinobi ninja.

No one had given Kakashi a second glance. They were all too busy celebrating the defeat of Madara and the Juubi by Naruto, Sasuke and the reincarnated Kage. Everyone had presumed Obito to have been defeated by Kakashi in the other dimension, or that even if he did return to the battlefield he could easily be defeated, now that they had been victorious in subduing the greatest foe the Ninja World had ever seen.

But Sakura had turned back, had seen the blood on his hands and the stricken look in his eyes as he fell out of the Kamui vortex. He didn't say a word as she bathed his cracked ribs in healing green chakra and wiped the blood staining his torn flak jacket. He remained silent as he took in the cheering crowd, a faraway look in his eye. He seemed so calm and composed, answering "Yes, I'm alright" to every question she asked him with the dignified assurance he had worn for as long as she had known him; yet Sakura felt she had never seen anyone as broken as the man that had sat before her.

And somehow, she knew without having to ask, that Kakashi had killed Obito.

It could have been a trick of the light, but he raised his right hand to his eye and any moisture there was gone in an instant. Raising his gaze back to the black stone again, he remarked, "I often wonder what it would had been like if Obito had lived."

She smiled a little. "Maybe we would have finally found someone who came up with lamer excuses and was later to all his appointments than you."

A brief chuckle sounded by her side. "Perhaps. Whenever I pictured Obito, I always imagined he'd still be wearing those ridiculous orange goggles all the way into adulthood, and he'd be giving me even-more ridiculous reasons why he'd been two hours late for our latest A-Rank mission. Likely the black cat and old lady he always blamed had probably died by then, but Obito would probably swear either its kittens or her grandchildren were haunting him."

Naruto goggles and half-baked excuses; not flanking the most villainous shinobi of all time and controlling the most dangerous primordial demon since the dawn of the Rikudo Sennin. Not with a fistful of lightning through his chest and a curse on his lips as he lay dying, bitter and unrepentant to the very end.

That's how Kakashi-sensei remembered Obito. Or wanted to remember Obito. When the dead die, do we simply erase their sins, whitewash the black and smoothen the edges, so that we only remember what we want to remember? Or was one simply making a mockery of the dead by diminishing their memory to one that was all sunshine and roses?

Tsunade hadn't always been sweet sake, but Sakura didn't ever want to forget that.

"At least he's at peace now. They all are."

She nodded, but his words brought a fresh round of tears to her eyes. Without thinking, she reached for his hand, grabbing his big one in her own clammy palm.

He didn't pull away.

_Grief._

_Sorrow._

_Silence. _

…

"Ah my rival, Kakashi! I knew I'd find you sooner or later, fortune always favours the bold and the youthful!"

Looking up, a brief smile tugged at his lips under his mask as Maito Gai leapt in front of him, his usual blinding grin plastered on his face. "How about it, Kakashi? Another challenge! Come on, we haven't had one in ages! I'll even let you choose this time."

"I'm leading 61 to 60 you know."

"Which is exactly why you must give me another chance to pit my youthful excellence against your prodigious skill!"

He smiled again, lightly fingering the worn edges of his beloved Icha Icha Paradise. "I'm sorry Gai, another time maybe. I was supposed to meet with the elders about an hour ago."

The spandex wearing jōnin immediately sobered up. "Concerning the succession of leadership?"

"Amongst other things." He continued thumbing the orange cover absently. The edges were really getting furry, they'd never been the same since Naruto had thrown them into the hot springs after Kakashi had broken his nth promise to pay for lunch last week. He really ought to check if the Pink Bookstore had any new stock. But trade of everything, let alone books had been slow to Konoha since the close of the war. Everyone was still busy packing away their war armour, repairing their lives and burying their dead.

"We're voting for you, Kakashi."

The silver-haired jōnin sighed, packing away the book safely into the pouch at his right hip. "Nothing's official until it's announced."

"I don't think the jōnin or anyone else believe that there is anyone more capable to lead the village than you. You were almost Hokage once..."

"And thankfully I turned it down." Kakashi cut him, his tone still light but a warning note creeping into it. "You know that I'm not suited to the role, Gai. My place is in the field, serving Konoha the way I know best."

"Your place is leading Konoha out of the ruin we are in!"

The sudden agitation in his comrade's voice stopped him. Gai looked away, slightly abashed. "Forgive me, my rival. That was most impolite of me. But I merely wanted you to know that Konoha needs you. The jōnin need a leader. The village needs a leader. I need a leader." Turning back his head to look him squarely in the eye, Gai dropped his voice several decibels. "Naruto isn't ready yet, Kakashi. And I suspect he won't want to leave Sasuke's side until he's sure the boy will never leave again. Until then, someone needs to take the reigns. Our allies need someone they can trust, our villagers need someone they can believe in again."

"Gai. You know that I am willing to step up for my village if they have need of me. And I have no doubt as to the support of the jōnin, the chunin and even the villagers."

He paused, a grim look entering his eye.

"It's the elders I'm afraid of."

…

"The retrieval squad we sent to HQ returned last night; I'm afraid the reports are true. We scanned the area, but the building and every other structure within a 10km radius was completely obliterated as a result of the Juubi's attack. Their bodies are probably indistinguishable from the dust and ash that make up that desert wasteland now."

"Very well. Thank your uncle for his assistance, and convey our condolences for his nephew. Such a promising young jōnin; the village will remember his sacrifice."

The young Hyuuga inclined his head politely. "I will let my uncle know, Daimyo-sama, Koharu-san and Homura-san. If you don't mind, I'll take my leave now."

As he disappeared over the threshold, the Fire Daimyo lifted his red silken fan again, fanning himself lethargically. "Is that all for today, gentlemen?" he moaned, beads of perspiration sliding down his forehead and onto the long ornate wooden table, where he sat at the head. His ceremonial headdress barely grazed the surface of the great red banner hanging behind him, the kanji for fire emblazoned on it in beautifully embroidered gold and black silk. "It's getting rather stuffy in here, but I suppose that nothing is stuffier than all these little matters I have to sit and listen to!" A rather childish pout hung on his lips, and he shifted heavily in his chair every few seconds; the heavy fabric of his elaborately stitched clothing making a gentle rustling sound whenever he moved. The room where the council meeting was taking place was well inside Hokage Tower, enclosed and the air unmoving; trapping all of Konoha's summer heat within its heart, akin to a brick furnace. Stupidly, the sides of the walls were lined with burning candles that barely illuminated the dark room, shadows dancing on the tabletop and around the carved wooden cranes that held them in place.

Years of putting up with the Daimyo's whining and impatience had hardened Homura, so although she shared his evident distaste about the fact that they were all slowly cooking in their thick, formal kimonos; she merely ignored his latest gripe. "_Sumimasen_ Daimyo-sama, but there are still many more matters of great importance to be attended to, not least among them concerning the succession of leadership in the village. As you are aware, Nara Shikaku and Senju Tsunade were among those killed at the hands of…"

"Yes, yes," the Daimyo waved his hand impatiently. "Meaning we need to get round to the rather unpleasant business of choosing new ones again. Hopefully they'll last a little longer than…" Before he could finish, another knock sounded at the door. "Enter!"

The door swung open, and Hatake Kakashi entered the room. "Daimyo-sama, Koharu-san, Homura-san." As always, the silver-haired jōnin was the very picture of unflappable calm, his long strides sure and swift as he made his way up the grey marble steps to the platform where they were all seated. Confident, not arrogant Homura noted. This was a man who wasn't easily cowed by authority. He nodded to the rest of the councillors, his lone dark eye as cool and unreadable as ever. "You wished to see me?"

"Ah, Hatake-san." Koharu adjusted the thick white scarf winding his neck, before clearing his throat. A survivor of the Second Ninja War, Koharu had once been a fearsome shinobi and member of Team Tobirama; and as such had a warrior's temperament to go with it. His face had a stern, proud look that would not go amiss among the condescending Uchiha elders of old and he often wasted no time beating around the bush. "How goes your progress with Kusagakure and Takigakure?"

The tall shinobi shifted a little. If he was surprised, he hid it well. "Not very well, I must confess. Their leaders continue to avoid meeting me, while their villagers continue making excuses as to their supposed absence or business. I had hoped that after a week of camping in their villages they might grow afraid or even annoyed with me, and come to parley with me of their own accord. But I am afraid the message is very clear: any offers of a treaty, let alone an alliance are unneeded and unwanted. Old habits die hard, apparently."

Murmurs of discontent began to grow around the room.

"And they are maintaining that stance with all the other Hidden Villages?" the elder man queried.

Kakashi shrugged lightly. "Other envoys appear to be subject to the same treatment but as to what goes on behind closed doors…I cannot say for sure."

"So they would barricade themselves from the hand of friendship and protection extended to them," Koharu murmured under his breath. He turned to Homura, whose mouth had set in a grim line upon hearing the tidings delivered by Kakashi, the wrinkles on her lined forehead deepening even further. Their eyes met. She replied, "By rejecting us, they are by extension, rejecting a place in the Shinobi Alliance. They stand to lose more than us in terms of military and trade strength, especially if other surrounding villages decide to seek protection from us or one of the other Hidden Villages."

Kakashi lifted his shoulders slightly again. "The whispers surrounding both them and the other smaller villages is that they do not trust us any more than they trust either Kiri, Suna, Kumo or Iwa; it is a mistrust born of both a fear of being conquered and old prejudices and misgivings."

The councillor sitting nearest to him snorted. "Foolish and unfounded, we do not seek to conquer. Our terms were merely that they pledge allegiance to us by lending us military aid in the case of a threat, we have a say in their current and future governance and that they yield a levy on their annual incomes to us!"

The jōnin looked him squarely in the eye. "Some would call that conquering," he answered quietly.

Watching the councillor give Kakashi a less than friendly look and wanting to avoid a possible awkward confrontation, Koharu coughed. "And Sunagakure?"

"Gaara-sama is happy to remain committed to our cause, so long as we do not give them cause to be unhappy with us. The terms of the alliance remain the same as before; however it was suggested that wider trade channels might be opened up to help facilitate mobility of provisions and supplies between villages. Most of Suna's crops were destroyed in the war, making them more dependent than ever on Konoha for agricultural produce."

Though expected, any semblance of good news these days was as welcome as the second coming of Hashirama. "We would be happy if you continue negotiating with Suna as to their proposed increase in trade channels, seeing as you seem to be the person best placed to continue all dialogues with our ally," Koharu stated, to much nodding and approval all around the table.

Homura commented, "It would also appear that you have the privilege of having earned the Kazekage's trust."

"Ah." Kakashi's eye was inscrutable, as per usual. "I would mostly owe the high esteem that the Kazekage holds me in to my student, Naruto with whom the Kazekage seems to have struck up a very deep friendship." He paused a while. "Will that be all then?"

"Dismissed. Report back to us in a week." He nodded courteously again, before exiting.

Koharu cleared his throat again. "Well, now that that's out of the way, where were we? Yes. So as I was saying earlier, Daimyo-sama, the deaths of Shikaku and Tsunade have necessitated the election of both a new Hokage and a new Jōnin Commander."

"Which must be done immediately," Homura added quickly. "Konoha's leadership is in shambles, and every day our enemies grow hungrier, watching, waiting…"

This time, the Daimyo interrupted her. "How old is Hatake Kakashi again?"

The two elders blinked. "Slightly past thirty I believe, Daimyo-sama," Koharu replied. "He can't be more than thirty-five moons."

"Hmm…" the Daimyo tapped the edge of the long marble trestle with his fan, screwing up his face thoughtfully. Homura began to feel uneasy. The Fire Daimyo was an easy enough person to get along with if one could merely turn a deaf ear and a blind eye most of the time; his biggest redeeming quality was that he always heeded the counsel of those he considered older, wiser and more knowledgeable than himself – which always included both Koharu and Homura. But there were times when the man did decide to exercise some of the sovereign rights that had been afforded him…and they had never boded well for them. "A good age for a leader don't you think, Koharu?" he continued musing, blithely ignorant of the growing tension rising from the pair of Konoha elders. "Old enough to command respect, mature enough to handle a crisis yet young enough such that he can still bring in fresh energy and revitalise an old institution. Minato had not even reached thirty when he was named Saturobi's successor, if I remember."

"Daimyo-sama," Koharu said slowly. "Surely you can't be suggesting Hatake-san as a possible candidate for the post of Hokage…?"

"Hmm." The man continued fanning himself again, humming a little. "Yes, yes…why not? The Kyuubi boy would have been an interesting choice but he is still but a boy, despite the great victory he won over Madara. Kakashi comes from good stock, does he not? Famed ninja of Konoha whose name is both feared and revered around the Five Shinobi Nations, pupil to both a Sannin and the Yondaime, and son of…"

"A coward."

The tapping of his walking cane against the polished granite floor echoed around the room as Shimura Danzō slowly took his allocated seat next to the two Konoha Elders. Eventhough he was well into his seventies, Danzō still gave off an impression of great power and authority more befitting a man half his age. He stood tall and straight and his speech was commanding and imperious. He wore thick bandages wrapped around his forehead and falling over his right eye, while his face was aged with numerous wrinkles and battle-worn scars.

Born into an era where Konoha had been at the epicentre of the fighting that had dogged the Shinobi world for generations before their precarious newfound era of peace, Danzō was the product of a system that had been forced to train their Academy children to throw a kunai before even learning how to lace their sandals. A shrewd tactician coupled with his keen battle instinct, his rapid rise through the ranks to ANBU Captain status by the tender age of nineteen was accelerated by Konoha's pressing need for more military commanders to lead them through the wars. However, for all his fame as an impressive fighter and martial aptitude, the power-hungry Danzō had never realised his lofty ambitions of taking the reigns of the village, Senju Tobirama having named his once-friend and closest rival as the Sandaime in his stead.

Bitterly disappointed, he'd continued working his way up in ANBU and had enjoyed a distinguished career with the Black Ops until his retirement from active duty. But even now, he continued to wield tremendous power and influence within the highly covert organisation and throughout the political set-up of Konoha; the unseeing hand that dictated the performance behind a well-fortified curtain of smoke and lies. Hiruzen in front, and Danzō behind, Homura reflected. Present the world with your best face, but keep your strongest kunai behind your back. While Sarutobi's genteel wisdom and noble preachings had won him friends, admirers and alliances, and had been the calming salve that Konoha had so badly needed to bandage and rebuild itself from the near state of ruin they had been left in; Koharu and herself had always been wary of their teammates' more naïve approach to the dealings of men; often times shocked at the amount of trust he afforded their partners, others plain outraged at his lack of stomach for brute force.

Like the Uchiha massacre.

It was for reasons exactly like the one above that Koharu and Homura had decided that for better or worse, they needed someone like Danzō around. Someone with the resources to provide them with the eyes and ears they no longer had, and to make the hard decisions- the ones that involved blood.

"Sorry I'm late, but I had to go to the hospital for another check-up."

"Those wounds of yours not healing well then, Danzō-sama?" One of the councillors spoke up.

The grizzled veteran adjusted one of the numerous bandages wrapped around his hand before slowly flexing his arm. "There are some injuries that even medical ninjutsu can't cure. I've faced a lot worse during the First and Second Great Ninja Wars. But don't presume the one who did this will get away unpunished." He grimaced, clutching his right hand presumably in pain. "And speaking of blood…" He turned to the Fire Daimyo. "I've seen many types of shinobi throughout my lifetime, Daimyo-sama. Idiots, air-heads, misers, lack-wits, traitors…but none's worst than a coward."

Another councillor weakly protested, "But Hatake-san is surely no coward – why, he was nicknamed "Kakashi no Sharingan, the hero of the Battle of the Kannabi Bridge when he was just thirteen!"

"And Hatake Sakumo was hardly a coward…"

"He defied his mission, his superiors and his Hokage; threw away his name, his honour and his life. And for what? To save a bunch of doddering fools. Any mission you go on, you know it could be your last, and the same goes for your teammates. Any shinobi that can't handle sacrificing your members for the sake of a mission is a coward in my books. Rule No. 4 of the Shinobi Handbook– A shinobi must always put the mission first, even above the lives of family, friends and lovers."

The room fell silent again. Another, softer protest filtered through the ranks of bowed heads. "But Sakumo-san only did it because he didn't want to needlessly sacrifice them…"

Danzō gave a short, mocking laugh. "Yes, and they were really grateful for it weren't they? His mistake cost us the Junya Pass, and we ended up losing three hundred shinobi thanks to his noble intentions. Even if he wasn't a bloody coward, he was a bloody big fool."

"But even so, Hatake Kakashi isn't Hatake Sakumo. There is no proof that Kakashi would make Sakumo's mistakes, in fact I'd dare say the man has probably learnt his lesson from that. And learnt it well, I'm sure." The councillors started nodding their heads at their leaders' words, some even clapping their hands as they praised the Daimyo's wisdom to the heavens above.

Danzō wasn't impressed. "Blood, Daimyo-sama," he responded, his voice gravelly and hoarse with age and illness, yet there was no mistaking the steel that lay beneath it. "The greatest traitor of them all. Just when you think you've conquered it, it comes back to rear its ugly head and bite you in the back; reminding you of who you are and what you came from." Danzō dropped his gaze to meet the Daimyo's eyes. "Hatake Kakashi may have served the village well in the past in his capacity as a jōnin, and none can deny his record of good service. But leading and following's two different bucket of slugs, and that coward's blood that flows through his veins may yet prove the downfall of him and us all. One could even go so far as to fault him for being the cause of the Fourth Great Ninja War! If only he'd carried out his mission orders and left behind that medic-girl with the Iwa nin, Obito would never have been left for dead and he would never have met that scum of the Earth, Uchiha Madara. In fact if you examine it closely, you can see that it's Sakumo all over again."

Noises of dissent began to mount.

"Konoha does not want nor need this kind of tainted leadership, Daimyo-sama," the aged shinobi lowered his voice almost to a purr. "His heart may be good, but if its soft you may be sure our enemies will crush it in an instant. We're barely lifting the covers of destruction wreaked by what historians will speak of as the worst Great Ninja War the ninja world has ever seen – we have to learn from our past mistakes, from Sarutobi's mistakes."

The atmosphere in the room became even tenser, if that was even possible. Danzō had never openly stated his dislike of old Sarutobi's methods and leadership, even if their rivalry was a well-known fact oft mentioned behind doors and over tea tables.

Danzō however ploughed on, either unaware or choosing to pay no heed to the sudden sharpening of focus of every eye trained on him, the straightening of every back as the councillors finally gave him their full attention.

"What Konoha needs, is a leader like me."

Homura held her breath, as the rest of the room gasped; either in shock, anger or maybe even fear.

To her right, the feline-masked man spoke up for the first time since the meeting had been called to order that afternoon. "You speak of weakness, cowardice and our respected Sandaime Hokage-sama in one breath, Danzō-sama." The ANBU chief codenamed "Cat" had a voice as deep as a war horn, yet the underlying tones were smooth and rich like a well-matured wine. His movements were both fluid and languid, with the litheness his mask's namesake were known for; from the way he walked to the simple act of scratching his head. Nonetheless, there was a certain liquid, calculated danger that seemed to belie him. Even having served as an ANBU at the height of her career as a kunoichi, Homura had never grown used to the feeling of looking into those lifeless, unseeing eyes painted onto every porcelain animal mask, the mouths and beaks stretched into a perpetually humourless, almost benign smile. Somehow, it was unnerving never knowing what hidden expressions; unspoken words or _murderous intent_ lay beneath so innocent-looking a covering. "Yet Konoha enjoyed its most fruitful years under Hokage-sama – our trade and mission incomes were unparalleled and the village enjoyed decades of peace and prosperity."

Danzō narrowed his eyes at the ANBU before succumbing to a sudden coughing fit, but Cat simply steepled his fingers on the table surface, resting his chin on them as he gazed coolly back at the elderly shinobi. As his coughs subsided, he shot Cat a dark look. "Do not forget that it was his very soft-heartedness and false teachings that set us up for the numerous attacks we have suffered these last years. I warned him that no good would come of passing on our knowledge to foreigners, yet it was his student Jiraiya who trained that villainous boy Pain; if Sarutobi hadn't been so forgiving as to allow Orochimaru to escape from the village unharmed; if he'd given more thought to worming out Uchiha Madara from whatever hole he'd been hiding in – we wouldn't be in the state of rut and ruin we are today. And I would like to remind you Cat, that as chief ANBU, your loyalty lies to the Hokage regardless of who he is, what he's done and _what you want_."

Cat fell silent, Danzō's unspoken threat hanging in the air between them but whether from fear or mockery, Homura would never know.

"And don't forget Daimyo-sama – you'll be needing someone other than his _former sensei_ to be dealing with Uchiha Sasuke."

Danzō leaned back in his chair, his face carefully expressionless as his eyes silently travelled each and every person's face as the delegation paused to digest his latest pronouncement. The _piece d'resistance_. The candlelight flickers only served to accentuate the many wrinkles and scars adorning Danzo's visage, most prominently the cross-shaped scar across his chin and making them appear more menacing and shadowy in the dim light of the room.

The seconds ticked by.

"Hmmm. Yes. Uh-huh. Hmmm. Yes," the Daimyo muttered enthusiastically as three councillors prattled their undoubtedly shallow counsel into his unthinking ear, his bulbous eyes bulging foolishly like an eager beaver's. Suddenly, he turned back to the meeting. "Yes. Danzō," he turned to the heavily bandaged shinobi sitting on his left. "I name you the Rokudaime Hokage."

_Valour._

_Vengeance._

_Victory_.

…

"If there are no other nominations, then I would like to call the proposal to a vote," Chōza's voice rang out, silencing the chattering jōnin as everyone turned their attention to the Akimichi clan head as he clapped his hands. The big, stocky red head dipped his eyes back to the scroll in his hands. "Hatake Kakashi, if you could please step forward."

Rather reluctantly, Kakashi got up from his seat and slowly made his way to the dais, conscious of every eye trained on him. As he passed the front rows, he spotted Genma and Kurenai, who both gave him encouraging thumbs ups and smiles. He vaguely heard a wolf-whistle that could have been Anko's, but the roaring sound in his ears prevented him from hearing much else. As he reached the front, Chōza's gripped his shoulders, surprisingly gentle for such a large man.

"Hatake Kakashi, do you accept this nomination?"

To his relief, his voice sounded no different from his usual dulcet apathy. "I do."

A brief look of relief flashed through his face before the Akimichi turned to the crowd. "A Jōnin Commander needs to have the unanimous support of those he leads, for there can be no true unity if there is dissatisfaction in the ranks. Let anyone that wishes to oppose this nomination speak now. Anyone?"

"I do."

"Gai!" Kakashi's mask almost fell off in shock as the fuzzy-browed green spandex wearer stood up from his seat, his eyes flashing. Spreading his arms wide, he called out, "Akimichi-san. Forgive me the interruption but I could not allow this election to go by without first speaking my mind."

Chōza grunted. "Don't hold back then, Gai."

The spandex loving jōnin nodded gratefully at the other man. By now, the watching jōnin were whispering anew in hushed voices, eyes darting from Kakashi to Gai, suspicious frowns and curious glances thrown at them. Kakashi tried to catch his friend's eye, but he had already directed his gaze back to the assembled crowd.

Gai's voice sounded again, ringing loudly against the hollow walls of the Jōnin Lounge. "Everyone, do not suppose that I oppose my esteemed rival Kakashi's nomination as Jōnin Commander because I doubt his talent or his ability to be our new leader –in fact it is quite the opposite." Turning his eyes to the front of the room again, their eyes finally met. Gai continued, "If there was one man I would stake my life on leading Konoha back to the glory days of its youth, it's Hatake Kakashi."

Unbidden, Kakashi felt his throat constricting, and the floor suddenly seemed rather interesting to observe.

"In fact, my fellow youthful companions, it's for this very reason that I'm sure you'll agree with me: Kakashi would be wasted as the Jōnin Commander. There is no doubt that he would make a splendid leader in the mould of Shikaku, but a man like him was surely destined for greater things.

Friends, I would like to nominate Hatake Kakashi as the Rokudaime Hokage of Konoha."

Hidden safely behind a secret door, Danzō gritted his teeth as he heard the shocked silence, then outburst of thunderous cheering and applause that rang through the next room, their cries echoing all the way to the rafters of Hokage Building. "Kakashi, Kakashi!" they chanted again and again, while the man in question could only look on helplessly as their shouts grew louder and more insistent.

The elders would never accept him, and although the Daimyo might have been swayed, he had already named Danzō to office and stupid as he was, even a fool Daimyo's word was law. Although the 2/3-jōnin majority needed to ratify the appointment looked like it might be a little bit of a problem now…

If he'd been unsure during the meeting, this made up his mind.

Hatake Kakashi had to go.

….

As he slowly forced his eyes to open, it felt as if his body was being stabbed by a million kunai, their sharp points ramming mercilessly again and again against every muscle, joint or bone that he possessed. His entire being ached and burned with the fires of a thousand needles, and even the dim lighting of the room failed to provide some relief to the nauseating feeling permeating every pore and fibre .

"Where…" his voice trailed off as he recognised the spartan white ceilings, the turquoise green curtains and the sterile smell that swamped his nasal cavity. He was in the Konoha Hospital, but he wasn't exactly sure which part of it.

"…Intensive Recovery Ward," a voice to his side finished for him, its owner slowly emerging from the shadows, his cane _tap-tap-tapping_ on the burnished marble floor.

"You." Sasuke started to shake with anger, eventhough even the slightest vibration or movement seem to jar his body with as much impact as if a ten ton Kyuubi had just fallen on top of him. He felt a cold, burning hatred flare up within him but for some strange reason, he couldn't seem to activate his ocular Kekkei Genkai. "I thought I'd killed you!"

Danzō on the other hand, didn't seem the least bit surprised by the young man's struggling as he calmly regarded the Uchiha with a mild contempt. "In case you haven't noticed, they've put you in chakra restraints," he answered, nodding at the thick wide bands binding Sasuke's arms and legs to the frame of his hospital bed.

To his dismay, Danzō was right. Being barred access to his chakra was a foreign, alien sensation; it was as if the heart of his very power had been chained up and surrounded by a high brick wall, leaving him feeling very naked and _vulnerabl_e. Sasuke snarled, "Who ordered this? I will destroy…"

"You were placed under restraints on the Hokage's orders, Uchiha-san."

"Then bring me to…"

"I am the Hokage now, Uchiha-san."

A shocked, angry silence followed this pronouncement and Danzō enjoyed every minute of it, relishing the shocked, then disbelieving expression that flicked over the normally poker-faced shinobi. "That means you were placed here under my orders." The elderly shinobi sat down next to his sickbed, and Sasuke resisted the urge to spit in his eye as it would have hurt him too much to even open his mouth to summon some spittle.

"What do you want from me?"

Danzō didn't hesitate. "Your cooperation."

The Uchiha couldn't help snorting. "You should know by now that my cooperation with others does not extend beyond furthering my own motives, and seeing as there is possibly no shinobi alive that is able to beat me, I cannot be forced."

Danzō remained expressionless, but when he spoke again the pure hatred in his voice was plain to hear. "Sons of traitorous, murderous clans should learn better manners and how to keep their mouth shut. If not," he lowered his voice. "He might just find himself and his friends at the wrong end of a kunai very soon."

Threats to his safety did not scare Sasuke anymore, but threats to his precious people did and always had, however much he'd tried to pretend otherwise in the past. Also because his throat was starting to hurt rather badly, he fell silent.

The heavily bandaged shinobi continued. "I see I've finally gotten your attention at last, Uchiha-san. Which was of vital importance, because I want to make a deal with you."

Hatred bloomed murderously again. "You murdered my entire clan, and now you stand here seeking my cooperation? Don't make me kill you," Sasuke spat, before choking vigorously as pain assaulted his senses.

"A credible threat, given that I've been told your extensive chakra exhaustion, bone and organ damage will take at least a month to recover," came the dry reply. "Which is why you should obey what I'm about to propose to you."

"Never. You had my father, my mother, my brother, my uncles, aunts, cousins die on your orders, all because you wanted to further your own ambitions and bring about the downfall of my clan. Itachi told me."

"And did your dear brother tell you that your beloved clan was proposing to stage a coup d'etat and seize control of the village? Thousands more would have died had they succeeded."

Sasuke pressed his lips tightly together. "Only because you ostracized them."

Danzō replied contemptuously, "The young and the ignorant will believe anything. Fortunately, I am old, wise and above all, forgiving. I am offering you the chance to obtain both justice and vengeance for your clan."

Sasuke stood still. "And why would you do that?" he asked suspiciously.

Danzō's expression revealed nothing. "I'm offering you the chance to right your clan's past, in exchange for your future."

"The only purifying my clan needs is through the blood of the likes of you…" His body was wracked by another spasm of violent coughing. After a short pause, he sniffed, "And how would I go about doing so?". _Although a good idea to start would be using Susanoo to slowly crush your throat and give you a painful, agonizing death. _

"You, for a start will go on wearing chakra binders for as long as I say so."

Plain shock and horror numbed him. "I will never agree to that," he said coldly. The nakedness he was feeling right now was frightening enough, he could not imagine living with it for the rest of his life. Without his chakra, he would not be able to perform any jutsu or use the Sharingan and as such, would be as useless a shinobi as that green buffoon Lee.

"You will, Uchiha-san. And you will accept this punishment as penance for the grievous crimes you have committed as a rogue ninja and as a member of the Akatsuki at your trial next week. You will also agree to village arrest indefinitely and to produce some Uchiha heirs within the next five years."

His horror turned to fury. Struggling to sit up straight as the pain clawed at his back, Sasuke replied, "I will not allow you to do this. When I…"

The elder shinobi still remained calm, even in the face of the young Uchiha's wrath. "You will obey," he repeated, a warning edge entering his voice, "or you might find that the Kyuubi brat and that Haruno girl might never come back from a mission one day. As I said earlier, _I am Hokage now_."

"You can't use them to threaten me, they mean nothing to me…"

"Even if that's case, I simply plan to have you declared mentally insane and locked up in a cell underground, but only after a delightful spell with Ibiki in the Torture and Interrogation Squad of course. Alternatively, I could give you a slow and drawn-out death by feeding you certain ah, medicines and keep you barely alive in a vegetative state. Your choice."

Panic began to cloud Sasuke's pain-weakened mind, but he forced himself to growl, "And if I cooperate, what do I get out of this deal?"

Danzō replied coolly. "The elders."

_Deception._

_Intrigue._

_Retribution_.

That was how the game would be played.

….

**A/N**: Will Danzo remain Hokage now that Kakashi has been revealed as the jonin's chosen candidate? Will Sasuke accept Danzo's offer to kill the elders in retribution for his clan? How do Naruto and Sakura fit into all this? Tune into the next chapter to find out Reviews and concrit are love, as always. Please do take the time out to list the things you liked or disliked, it would really mean the world to me.

Katon – Fire Release

Kusagakure – Hidden Grass Village

Rikudo Sennin – Sage of the Six Paths

Sumimasen – Excuse me

Sunagakure – Hidden Sand Village

Takigakure – Hidden Waterfall Village

Tanabata – Japanese Star Festival


	2. Chapter 1: On a Kunai's Edge

**Omiai**

_Living on the edge, you can't help yourself from falling._

-Aerosmith, "Livin' on the Edge'"

**Last chapter: **

_Hidden safely behind a secret door, Danzō gritted his teeth as he heard the shocked silence, then outburst of thunderous cheering and applause that rang through the next room, their cries echoing all the way to the rafters of Hokage Building. "Kakashi, Kakashi!" they chanted again and again. _

_If he'd been unsure during the meeting, this made up his mind._

_Hatake Kakashi had to go. _

…_._

"_You will, Uchiha-san. And you will accept this punishment as penance for the grievous crimes you have committed as a rogue ninja and as a member of the Akatsuki at your trial next week. You will also agree to village arrest indefinitely and to produce some Uchiha heirs within the next five years."_

_Panic began to cloud Sasuke's pain-weakened mind, but he forced himself to growl, "And if I cooperate, what do I get out of this deal?"_

_Danzō replied coolly. "The elders."_

* * *

**Chapter 1 - On a Kunai's Edge**

"So there's been no word from him?"

"I'm afraid not, Danzō-sama. The last communication we received was from Takumi no Sato over two weeks ago. There has been nothing but silence ever since."

"Wait another week before sending out a rescue squad to Tanigakure. I want Hatake Kakashi's body brought back to me, dead or alive." _Preferably the latter, his head would make a rather charming display next to my desk._

"Hai, Danzō-sama."

Long after Dajimu had left, Danzō's thoughts continually returned to the silver-haired Jonin Commander of Konohagakure, even as he tried to busy himself with the latest intelligence reports on Takigakure and Kusagakure. Danzō had recently sent Kakashi away on an A-ranked assassination mission nearly a month ago to the peaceful Hidden Village Hidden in the Valley after a rogue ninja suspected to be a member of a mercenary syndicate that was sacking villages and robbing merchants around the lands bordering River, Fire and Wind. The nin in question was rumoured to be a renegade shinobi of Kiri's hunter nin division, and second-in-command only to the shinobi heading the entire operation.

It wasn't uncommon for villages to lose contact with their shinobi during such highly classified and dangerous missions, but it was rare for the village to receive their shinobi back in a single piece after such instances.

Danzō allowed a rare smirk to grace his lips. For the last three years, he had handed his Jonin Commander increasingly suicidal missions to complete with the compliment that "no one else was suitable" and the assertion Konoha "needed the money", in the hopes that it would be the last words he would need to say to that Hatake brat, who was becoming an increasingly irksome and dangerous thorn in his side. If successful, this would be the fiftieth and hopefully final time he would have to send Hatake Kakashi away on another life-threatening mission.

The simple truth was that even after three years, Danzō still didn't feel secure in his position as Konoha's Rokudaime Hokage. Not with Hatake Kakashi enjoying more than two-thirds the support of all the Konoha jonin, chunin and villagers; his influence and popularity ever growing with each lie being circulated around the village markets and bars about how Danzō had "usurped" the post from the masked jonin.

After news of the jonins' resolution to nominate Kakashi as Rokudaime Hokage had leaked, the Council of Elders had immediately convened an emergency meeting where they effectively blackmailed the entire jonin population into ratifying Danzō's election to office, reminding them that the Fire Daimyo was likely to withdraw both his political and financial support to the village should they choose to incur his wrath by rejecting his chosen Hokage Candidate. So they had all raised their hands to say their 'ayes' and bent their knees to swear their undying loyalty to him, but Danzō knew that in their heart of hearts, he wasn't their chosen Hokage.

At least, not while Kakashi was still around.

Kakashi had taken to his newly elevated position as Head of Konoha's military arm well enough; even his subordinates' continuous complaints of his incredible ability to be tardy to most everything (in Konoha's more militant days under Senju Tobirama, Danzō was almost certain that being more than three hours late for a meeting with the Council would have been punishable by hanging, until his soft-hearted fool of a successor Sarutobi had abolished the practice) and the Elders' supreme irritation at his insistence of reading _Icha Icha _during every meeting failed to diminish the enduring popularity he seemed to enjoy among everyone else in the village. True, he lacked a little of the tactical brilliance and ingenuity that Nara Shikaku had been renowned for, but even Danzō couldn't deny that his leadership and marshalling of a jonin force greatly weakened in the aftermath of the devastating Fourth Great Ninja War had been anything but exemplary.

Which hadn't exactly served to endear Danzō any further to the general population or their allies.

_Patience, _the elderly shinobi reminded himself as he summoned Dajimu to bring him another pot of tea; every shinobi had his day, even the old, forgotten and supposedly toothless ones. _Especially_ the old, forgotten and supposedly toothless ones.

He'd wait patiently for any scroll, summons or death announcements to arrive; after all, Danzō was an old man who'd lived longer than most after learning the virtues of waiting for exactly the right moment to strike. Then maybe, and only just maybe he'd send out that rescue squad.

* * *

Dried blood caked the side of his ribs, occasionally oozing small trickles of red and pus down his hips and thighs. His breathing sounded harsh in the still night air as he sank to the ground, gritting his teeth as he tried to stem some of the gashes on his arms that were still weeping. A hiss of pain escaped him as his injured foot struck a crack on the floor, jarring his fractured right ankle and causing a bolt of pain to run down his spine. Blood dripped from his left eye, eventhough he'd squeezed it shut because the burning was so bad he couldn't even bear to open it. Slowly, he dragged his injured foot over the carpet and knocked on the door. Three raps so soft he wasn't even sure she'd hear.

The door flew open and Sakura stood there in the doorway, her big jade eyes wide with mingled relief and horror as she took in his battered, dishevelled appearance. "Kakashi-sensei…" Kakashi leaned onto her smaller frame for support, hobbling slowly over the threshold before collapsing onto her couch. Wordlessly, she cut through his blood-drenched uniform and summoned healing green chakra to her fingertips, pressing it against the wound in his side.

Instant relief flooded his senses as his blood vessels and skin started knitting together, the soothing sensation of her cool, liquid chakra in his body lulling him into a semi-conscious state whereupon he soon passed out.

When he finally came to, the sky outside was still dark but there was a pleasant savoury smell flooding his nostrils, causing his stomach to growl hungrily.

"You're finally awake." Slowly lifting his head from her yellow leather armrest, Kakashi spotted his former student chopping carrots and tossing them into a pot bubbling cheerfully on the stove. Throwing away the discarded carrot top, she grabbed a pair of yellow onions and began vigorously slicing them into thick ringlets.

"How long was I out for?" He stretched his back and heard a couple of joints pop impressively.

"Five days. You used the Mangekyō again, didn't you." It wasn't a question.

He knew what was coming next. "It was a life and death situation."

Whirling around to face him, she snapped, "Exactly. _Your_ life and _your_ death! Kakashi-sensei, I've warned you that your optic nerves are beginning to degenerate and it's possible that your brain is suffering permanent damage since your body goes into a coma every time you overextend yourself from using the Sharingan! I suppose you have an early retirement wish by becoming blind and dumb?! This is the twentieth time in three years you've been here lying dead on my couch, in a coma lasting more than three days!" Her voice was becoming shriller and tinnier. "And every time I ask myself again and again if you're ever going to open your eyes!"

The pot continued bubbling. Kakashi said nothing.

Sighing, she reached for the packet of beef and began dicing it into small cubes. "I'm sorry," she mumbled, tossing a handful of beef cubes into the soup. "I know it isn't your fault."

"You know he won't rest until I'm out of his way."

"And who knows? At the rate you're going, his wish could come true anytime soon!" Angry tears began to pool at her eyelids, but she blinked them away. Slamming down the lid on the pot, she stalked back to the fridge, her back against him.

Kakashi raised a hand to his scarred left eye. Gingerly, he pressed the eyelid. It still felt a little sore, but it seemed like his body had done a good job healing itself after Sakura had tended to his wounds that night. "If it's not me, then it's going to be Gai, Kurenai or someone else. I'm not the only one Danzō would be glad to see the back of."

Sakura opened the pot lid, sniffing gingerly before dropping some salt into the boiling stew and stirring it vigorously, her pointed silence warning him that the topic was closed and he would do well to keep his mouth shut if he valued the well-being of his ribs. After a few minutes, she snapped the dial shut. "Dinner's ready."

Kakashi gratefully accepted the large portion of soba noodles and steaming beef broth she ladled onto his bowl, muttering a quick "Ittadakimasu" before digging in. By the time she returned to the table, his bowl was empty and her ex-sensei was tugging the corners of his mask back up.

"I'll never know how you manage to eat so fast without choking," Sakura grumbled, setting another plate in front of him. "Here. They didn't have saury at the market, but I thought you might have missed this," she said, before digging her chopsticks into her own bowl.

It never ceased to amaze Kakashi how Sakura had gone from a little girl that reminded him of everything that was wrong with today's generation of shinobi and had grated on his nerves so much in those early years that he'd actually contemplated child homicide, to someone who knew just the right way to make his favourite miso eggplant and crispy saury in the short span of eight years. It was Sakura, not Gai who knew that the first thing Kakashi did after every mission was to get a miso eggplant and saury takeaway from the bento place next to Yakiniku Q, it was Sakura, not Gai who Kakashi spent most of his Friday evenings having a cup of ocha with after a long day of paperwork at the office, and it was Sakura who Kakashi always had down as the first name on his team sheet for a mission.

They say that war changes people, and both Sakura and Kakashi had been no exception. Kakashi had only been thirteen when Obito had "died" during the Battle of the Kannabi Bridge in the Third Great Ninja War, leaving behind his Sharingan and the eternal words of wisdom that those who broke the rules were trash, but those who abandoned their comrades were worse than trash. The Fourth Great Ninja War had robbed Sakura of the woman who'd turned her into a kunoichi worthy of bearing the Konoha hitai-ate, who'd given her self-belief and been so much more to Sakura than just a role model. The Fourth Great Ninja War had exposed Obito to be one of the greatest villains Konoha had ever produced, and shattered the tragic-hero memory of him Kakashi had been deluded with and had shaped his entire adult life around since his supposed death all those years ago.

War had torn different parts of their lives apart, but Sakura and Kakashi had found comfort in old bonds and companionships in its aftermath. She was one of his only friends who knew about Obito before Tobi, while he was the sole father figure she had left in the world after her parents died. She was the first person he had stumbled to after returning from that last, nightmarish confrontation with Obito and he was the first person she had run to when Danzo had been announced as Tsunade's replacement.

And like discovering an old book that's been around forever but never really got round to opening, they'd slowly grown closer over the last three years, reacquainting themselves with the other; the likes and dislikes, the quirks and the qualms, and at the end of it, realising that perhaps they had never really been that different after all.

And somewhere along the way, Sakura had grown up from being the pupil he'd gone to sleep dreaming of strangling the most to a young woman whose willingness to patch up his wounds in her own house because of his hospital phobia, quiet dependability on missions and engaging conversation over those Friday night dinners had made her an invaluable person he'd come to rely on.

Meanwhile, the pinkette gave him the evil eye as the plate of miso eggplant in front of him remained untouched, Kakashi stubbornly refusing to eat it as long as she was looking at him. "It's getting cold, you know."

"I don't mind cold eggplant. Some might even say it brings out the miso flavour even better this way."

The kunoichi snorted loudly, but as soon as she went to refill her glass of water, he tore off his mask and took a giant mouthful. _Mmm, heavenly._

"I can hear you chewing," she called from the kitchen.

"It's only the neighbour's rats eating his cheese again. Teru-san really should get around to buying that cat," he replied nonchalantly, shoving another spoonful into his mouth.

Possibly giving him some time to polish off the entire dish, Sakura took a little while to fill up her glass but when she finally emerged, she didn't look one bit surprised at the empty plate before him. "It's been a little while since we've been able to have Friday night dinner like this," she smiled, finishing up the last of her beef broth.

Feeling warm and contented now that he'd had a good nights' sleep and a bellyful of food, Kakashi was feeling satisfied enough to purr, until he imagined the look on Pakkun's face. Instead, he said, "Well I don't imagine my ex-student would appreciate me stealing away his girlfriend every Friday night for a romantic dinner in her apartment." He wondered if she'd made dessert, she usually did.

She blushed slightly, her hands fidgeting with her chopsticks. "Sasuke-kun isn't really the jealous type…" she mumbled.

Kakashi tried to look a little sad and sympathetic, although it was rather hard to convey such depth of emotion with only one eye. He wasn't surprised – Kakashi's ex-student turned rogue had never been the best at expressing his feelings (unless it was a manic rage whenever the name 'Itachi' was mentioned) and for all little Sakura-chan's attempts at flirting and near-blind hero worship, it seemed fairly obvious that even eight years and one dead brother later, she was never going to get anything more out of him than a disinterested grunt. In the years following Team Seven's painful breakup, Sasuke had been knocking at the gates of hell and back, and no matter how hard Naruto and Sakura reached out their hands, Kakashi wasn't sure how much they'd ever be able pull him back. Sakura may have comforted herself by hoping that once the war was over and Itachi and the Uchiha clan had been avenged, her Sasuke-kun might find it in him to feel, to love, to smile again and maybe she could have been forgiven for hoping, she along with all the other village girls. But the war had come and gone three years and Sasuke still had the emotional capacity and social skills of a wooden spoon.

The only surprise had been that the Uchiha had actually been the one to ask her out and initiate their "relationship". It had been even more surprising that they'd lasted more than six months, far longer than how much Genma had originally placed his 500 ryo on.

Sasuke and Sakura were really none of his business, he'd never been one to pry into anyone's private life (and he expected the same courtesy in return) but somehow he found himself taking a little more interest in his ex-students' relationship than he should. Maybe he wanted to believe that the Uchiha heir wanted to put an end to those ridiculous rumours of Naruto and himself once and for all, or maybe he wanted to believe that Sasuke had realised that all-powerful and lone wolf he was, he couldn't revive his clan on his own.

Or maybe he just wanted to believe that Sasuke was the right man to make Sakura happy.

She interrupted his thoughts. "You know, Naruto and I really thought you were gone this time," she said softly, fidgeting with the red hem of her shirt. For as long as he'd known her, Sakura had worn nothing but red, with the exception of the green and blue of the Konoha jonin uniform. He supposed with hair that colour, it was pretty difficult to colour coordinate without looking like a clashing mess.

"You'd been gone a month, and no one had heard anything from you. I've already lost one teacher, I don't think I could stand losing another."

_I, not we. Was it intentional? _Kakashi didn't reply her, but when he looked into her eyes he knew that he didn't really need to know the answer. After all, this was the only girl after Rin he was finally ready to show his face to, if only it wasn't so damn fun teasing a reaction out of her every time she got her hopes up at dinner time.

"I know," he smiled, giving her his usual eye crinkle. He reached over and briefly squeezed her fingers to show her he understood. "Now, what's for dessert?"

* * *

"Arigato, Homura-san, Koharu-san. Please come again soon." The soft tinkle of the doorbell sounded as the grey-haired woman pushed open the thin bamboo flaps shielding the entrance, closely followed by her bespectacled companion. Old Kaori-obaasan waved them off with a respectful bow, before hurrying back inside. The worn, wooden sign that stood outside the door was painted in fading red kanji, announcing the days' dinner special as a miso porridge and soup set for 50 ryo.

Talking softly, the two elderly shinobi slowly made their way down the quiet, leafy road back to the main part of the village, their voices clear in the still, night air when a kunai whizzed down at their feet. Instantly alert, Koharu and Homura leapt out of their way, the long hems of their kimonos flapping wildly as they sprang to the side. But before their feet had reached the ground, a series of powerful explosions went off from underneath them.

_Exploding tags,_ Homura thought grimly, summoning chakra and performing a quick Kawarimi jutsu. _Definitely an ambush. The only question was, how many of them? _Coughing a little as she landed on the nearby tree branch, she glimpsed Koharu on the branch below her. Just as she was about to call out to him, the branch she was standing on vanished in a shower of sparks and Homura was flung violently to the ground. _A triple-pronged attack – their attackers had chosen their spot well and anticipated their movements. _A rod of fear speared her heart – _could Kusagakure and Takigakure be that desperate to annihilate Konoha that they would boldly strike at them barely a mile away from the village centre?_

Her cheek grazed the rough dirt and rocks, and the elderly kunoichi winced a little as she felt the sting of air washing over the raw scrapes. Belatedly, she realised that she had fallen into a deep pit of some sorts. The soil looked freshly excavated, so it must have been dug for this very purpose. Carefully sitting up, she craned her neck for any sign of Koharu but as the pit extended at least six feet deep into the ground, the only thing she could make out was the dim twilight sky covering the mouth of the hole.

Thunderous pattering of feet sounded above her head, and small clumps of dirt and grass fell down as she heard several voices shouting. _Four or five. Koharu and I will never be able to take them, not at this age, and especially not if they are jonin._

A distant memory flitted through her mind of a stern, proud face encased by a metallic Konoha hitai-ate, a shock of white hair and an enormous rush of water, Koharu and Hiruzen cheering madly beside her as Tobirama's Suiton jutsu engulfed the invading army of Kumo nin.

_I am a Konoha shinobi, and no matter how old, weak or crippled I am, I will still die fighting_.

As Homura steeled herself and gathered her chakra, a rabbit mask peered down at her, stark and eerily white against the dark sky. "Homura-san, are you hurt?"

* * *

As he watched Rabbit and Dog set to work lifting Homura out of the pit, Uchiha Sasuke ground his teeth furiously. A few more seconds were all he would have needed to make sure the elders never saw the light of day again. Silently slipping away into the undergrowth, the raven-haired young man trudged back to the Uchiha compound, cursing. If that ANBU patrol hadn't happened to come along right then, he would have been happily torturing answers out of those two wrinkled sods right now, slowly pricking their throats with his kunai as he watched them beg for mercy after confessing to their hand in his clan's demise, for forcing Itachi to become a traitor and a double agent at the cost of his entire life, pleading as he watched the life drain out of their treacherous eyes.

Sasuke didn't know how long more he'd be able to wait until the next time.

Flinging the living door room open, he stomped over to the fireplace, his hands unconsciously forming the Tiger seal when he suddenly stopped.

It had already been three years, but it was going to take longer than that to erase a lifetime of habit.

_Eventhough it was the hottest day of summer on record, Sasuke could feel his hands as cold and sweaty as if he'd just dunked them into a pail of icy water. _

_He wiped them resolutely onto his nice new shirt, the one nii-san had bought for him at Maki-ojisan's shop down the road. Black, with the big red and white Uchiha fan symbol boldly emblazoned on its back._

_Uchiha._

_He was an Uchiha._

_He was an Uchiha._

_He was an Uchiha._

"_I am an Uchiha!" The words were roaring through his head, even as he heard himself shouting, "Katon: Gokkakyuu no Jutsu!"_

_Please let it work._

_As he felt the chakra rush through his belly, his lungs, his throat and explode in a fiery ball of orange flames that lit up the entire pier, Sasuke felt his entire soul come alive, as one fierce and hot with the fire. _

_Uchiha._

_They had fire burning through their veins. They were the masters of the flames, fanning them to bigger, brighter heights. Burning and extinguishing at will. _

_And he was one of them._

_As the last ember of his jutsu flickered out, the little boy turned around eagerly but all he saw was Fugaku walking back to the house, his back as cold and imposing as his silence was. _

_Tears prickled at his eyes, but he blinked them away. His throat ached and burned from the ferocity of the flames he'd just exhaled, but when he swallowed, the only thing he could feel was numbness. _

_Then he heard it. _

"_That's my son."_

_I'll never make a fireball again_, he thought dully, reaching for the box of matches he now kept stored inside a cupboard as he struck a match and tossed it into the hearth. The fireplace sprang to life, and soon the room was heated to a toasty temperature much welcomed during one of Konoha's colder nights. Reclining on the tatami mat that had once belonged to Mikoto, Sasuke stared broodingly into the flames. Involuntarily, he clasped his right wrist, running his finger back and forth over the thick metal band encircling it. He could vaguely feel the faint pulse of something flowing through his veins, whispering like a dying heartbeat as it struggled against an unseen chakra-inhibiting dam.

"_Uchiha Sasuke."_

_He lifted his eyes to face them, carefully making sure his face was blank and devoid of any emotion. From the corner of his eye, he could see that the cavernous room was packed to the brim with shinobi squeezed next to each other on benches like sardines tightly packed in a can, others huddled in little corners against the wall while others even stood upside down on the pillars as there was no more standing room. A glimpse of bright pink and yellow in the audience, before being swallowed by the rows and rows of faces lining the room. _

_Yet, you could hear a senbon drop in the hushed silence._

_Koharu cleared his throat. "The council has reached a decision."_

_To his right, he could see several girls covering their faces with their hands, one of them even sobbing quietly while her friend comforted her in low whispers. He imagined Naruto's anxious face, his cerulean eyes wide with fear while Sakura's were trembling green pools, small tears rolling down her cheeks. Kakashi's lone charcoal eye lowered in sadness as he put his hand on Sakura's shoulder to steady her shaking body. _

"_Uchiha Sasuke. The council has found you guilty of various counts of international crimes, chief among them being your participation in the criminal organisation known as the Akatsuki, in which you were accused of attacking the Kumogakure Jinchuuriki, Killer Bee, wounding and subsequently cutting off a tail belonging to the Hachibi for use by Uchiha Obito for his Eye of the Moon Plan. Do you deny this?"_

"_No."_

"_You are further accused of conspiring with your fellow clansmen, Uchiha Obito and Uchiha Madara to bring about the downfall and destruction of this village. Do you deny this?"_

"_No."_

_Koharu read further down the list. "You are also accused of attacking and grievously wounding the Rokudaime Hokage, Danzo-sama as he returned from the Five Kage Summit in Iron Country upon the orders of Uchiha Obito. Do you deny this?"_

_His lip curled slightly. "No."_

"_You do not deny that you were an apprentice to the disgraced traitor and ex-Konoha ninja, Orochimaru, that you sought him out to teach you the ways of various kinjutsu, among them forbidden sealing and summoning techniques banned by the Sandaime Hokage?"_

"_No."_

_Koharu folded up the paper. "People of Konoha. You have heard the confessions of his crime from this traitor's very own lips. He does not deny that he has plotted and conspired with villainy such as Uchiha Madara, Uchiha Obito and Orochimaru to bring about your deaths, your downfall, your destruction. He freely admits to killing, wounding, betraying your husbands, wives and children. What would you have us do with him?"_

_Silence._

"_Kill him." Everyone's head swivelled to the left, and Sasuke looked on as a tall shinobi stood up, shaking his fist in the rogue nin's direction. His dark eyes were blazing with hatred as he spat, "My cousin was a samurai serving guard in Iron Country during the Five Kage Summit. This traitorous, murderous piece of sh*t killed him and dozens of others without even blinking an eye. I say we do the same to him, only without the mercy of a quick death."_

_Soon, more voices started joining in. "My entire family was killed in the Fourth Shinobi War!" a wrinkled old lady shrieked. "I saw them charred to ashes with my very own eyes, they never stood a chance against those fires from hell. Anyone that was in league with that Uchiha scum should be burnt alive a thousand times over!"_

"_Let this one go the same way the other two went – traitorous villains should get what they deserve!"_

_Even as the vitriol started pouring in from all four corners of the room, Sasuke felt oddly calm. _

"_Let Naruto kill him!"_

_His eyes suddenly snapped open._

_The cry had come from burly farmer in the second to last row from the back. Putting his meaty hands on his hips, he glared at everyone. "He killed the other two didn't he? He can kill this one too."_

"_No." He could have recognised that voice even in the middle of a million screeching crows. _

_Naruto's fists were balled, and although he couldn't see it, Sasuke knew them to be like two, ice-blue chips of stone. Kami-sama knew he'd seen them enough times in his dreams over the years. Firm, unwavering sky-blue in his belief for the brother he knew still existed under the layers of hatred and confusion. _

"_Naruto, calm down!" Sakura's plaintive plea could be heard even over the growing calls for his head from the restless crowd._

"_You call this justice?" The blonde boy raged at Koharu and the rest of the elders sitting silently on the dais. "Sasuke-teme came back to save Konoha, he helped me kill Obito and Madara; and this is how you reward him, by asking for his head?!"_

_Sasuke sighed. Everything was going exactly as Danzo had predicted._

_Danzo slowly rose from his seat. "And you're right of course, Uzumaki Naruto." Upon hearing his voice, every whisper in the room suddenly died down. Fixing the Kyuubi container with a half-mocking stare, he said, "But tell me honestly boy, what kind of Hokage would I be if I let crimes and atrocities of such magnitude go unpunished? What kind of Hokage will you be if you let such crimes and atrocities go unpunished, even if the guilty one is the one you love most in the world?"_

_Naruto fell silent, but fury was radiating off him like waves of burning chakra, Sasuke half expecting to see the orange tails of Kurama start forming as the Jinchuuriki's rage manifested in the form of the demon's own hatred-infused chakra. _

_The Rokudaime Hokage continued, "The usual punishment for such treason would be death. But I am sure everyone will agree with me that in the aftermath of the Fourth Great Ninja War, we have seen far too much death. And as Uzumaki Naruto so kindly reminded us, redemption need also be rewarded. Our past Hokages have always been great champions of justice, but as our dearly respected and my good friend Sandaime Hokage used to say, there are times where mercy goes hand in hand with justice and I believe this is one of them." Ignoring Naruto's loud scoff of obvious disbelief, he continued. "So," he said. "My decision is thus:_

_Uchiha Sasuke will be pardoned."_

_A tremendous cacophony of noise sounded, howls of protests mingled with sobs of relief, confused shouts and general outrage. Sasuke tried to remain indifferent, but he could feel an angry flush starting to creep up his neck. If only they'd known what he'd gone through, what _Itachi_ had gone through for them…_

"_Silence!" Danzo thundered. Holding up his hand authoritatively, he went on, "On three conditions: Firstly, he will be confined to village arrest indefinitely, and will not be allowed to leave Konoha unless accompanied by ANBU. Secondly," he raised his voice slightly as the mutterings started breaking out again. "He will be sentenced to wearing chakra binders for the rest of his life." The sudden increase in volume drowned out the rest of his words, "and lastly, he must agree to produce some heirs within the next five years. That is the Council's decision."_

_And it was a good judgement too, thought Sasuke bitterly. It helped Danzō to accomplish many things with a single masterful stroke. The shinobi would know the real reason why he couldn't be killed: the Sharingan was too valuable a weapon to lose; as the last remaining Uchiha and an Uchiha in which the coveted Mangekyō Sharingan had awakened in, the elders would be hoping to rebuild the entire Uchiha clan through him – under their close "supervision" and free of the poisonous hatred and influence of Madara. By keeping Sasuke under "village arrest", Danzō could keep an eye on his movements under the pretext of concern for his mental "safety". The villagers would see it as an act of mercy: Danzō allowing Sasuke retribution for his crimes by giving the boy the chance to start a new life as well as appearing sympathetic to the wishes of Naruto, who many still revered as their saviour and hero; hoping to appease them and curry a little more favour. The mandate for his lifelong use of the chakra binders was similarly double edged: on the surface, it served as a "just" punishment for the wrongs he'd committed but in reality, it was simply a way for Danzō to remove him as a threat; without the use of chakra, he was no better than the average man down the road. His entire existence as a shinobi would be reduced to a mere title- obsolete. _

_And more importantly, he would never be able to take revenge on Danzō or the elders. Not unless it was using chakra-free means such as kunai and shuriken, which they could always dodge. The Hokage had conveniently left that part out when he had visited Sasuke in the hospital that time. _

_And Danzō would have no shortage of political support either; the Fire Daimyo had had increasingly sleepless nights at the thought of a deranged, blood-thirsty young shinobi wandering Fire Country, armed with three seemingly invincible Mangekyō techniques and two Kekkei Genkai, with no shinobi seemingly able or eager to confront him in battle. It was a win-win situation for all._

"Sasuke-kun."

His eyelids flickered open, as Sakura's soft voice permeated his meandering thoughts. He felt her touch his shoulder gently, but he instinctively jerked away. A hurt look clouded her emerald gaze, but she quickly let it pass. Even as children, Sasuke had abhorred physical contact of any kind, quickly lashing out whenever anyone (particularly Naruto) overstepped the boundaries of his personal "space". But it still hurt Sakura that even after six months, her boyfriend still reacted so strongly to any form of touching; even the lightest tap on the shoulder often made him twitch violently.

"Sakura…what are you doing here?" He tried to keep his voice neutral, but somehow a bite of impatience tempered it. The Uchiha compound was naturally a place that was both sacred and personal to him, and Sasuke guarded his privacy fiercely– he'd only permitted Naruto and Sasuke to visit him once in over eight years of friendship.

She swallowed. "Gomen nasai, Sasuke-kun but when you didn't show up at the restaurant, I got worried."

He glanced at the bright plastic orange clock Naruto had gotten him as a "welcome home" present three years ago, it looked garishly out of place next to the expensively woven tapestries and ink paintings Fugaku had lined among the walls of the Uchiha living room. The fluorescent yellow hour hand was pointing close to the number 10.

"I must have fallen asleep."

Although she made no move to touch him again, her eyes were warm and sympathetic as she looked at him. "Long day at the library?"

_If only you could see me now, okaa-san, otou-san, nii-san, _Sasuke thought bitterly._ Your precious, clever Sasuke-chan fulfilling his dream job as a librarian at the local Konoha Library. _Fugaku would have had a cow that his son's day job didn't involve any sort of weaponry or violence_. _

He grunted. "Hn. There were a couple of people I wouldn't have hesitated using Chidori on; they didn't seem to understand the concept of 'loaned out, come back tomorrow.'

"Still, it's better than Ichiraku."

He had to agree with her. Chakra-less, job-less and nearly friend-less, Sasuke had had to swallow his pride and go knocking on every shop door in Konoha looking for work, seeing as he would never be able to rejoin Team Seven, at least not while Danzo remained in power. But eventhough Danzō's chakra binders left him as good as powerless, the villagers still slammed doors in his face, spat in his eye and literally threw him off their doorsteps; paranoid from the exaggerated rumours of his past strength floating around the village and highly suspicious of the chakra binders' actual effectiveness.

Kindly old Teuchi had been the only one willing to give him a chance (although he suspected the old man could hardly afford to offend his biggest customer's best friend) and Sasuke had spent a miserable week scrubbing dirt off pot bottoms, chopping carrots and washing dozens and dozens of Naruto's used ramen bowls in the sweltering heat of Ichiraku's back kitchen before Sakura had pointed out that the Konoha Library had vacancies.

"Sasuke-kun?" she started again timidly.

He grunted moodily, feeling his black mood starting to envelop him once more. Lately, he'd felt his frustration threatening to boil over more and more frequently; his exasperation at the monotony of his life and his increasing anger at his failure to kill the elders constantly hanging over him and casting a cloud over his thoughts. His increasing resentment as he saw Naruto, Sakura and all their peers in the Konoha 11 swiftly rising up the shinobi ranks to team leaders, jonin, ANBU. Sasuke heard them bragging over the counter to their chunin subordinates about their latest heroic escapades as he stamped their magazines and books, hands shaking.

"It's your birthday tomorrow," Sakura said, twisting her fingers nervously on her apron skirt. Somehow, even that small movement seemed to irk him.

"I don't want to do anything."

"But Naruto said…"

"I don't care what the dobe says, he won't even be here tomorrow!" The sudden vehemence of his tone took them both aback.

Swallowing hard, Sakura whispered, "Gomen, Sasuke-kun but you know Naruto is on that mission to Kiri…"

"Yes, while I get to spend my days arranging all 50 volumes of Konoha History in alphabetical order and telling people off every time they laugh too loudly while reading Shinobi Weekly. I think I'll just spend the rest of tomorrow doing that, it's what I'll be doing for the rest of my life anyway."

As he stalked out of the room, Sasuke could hear the familiar sound of the kunoichi's stifled sobs as she sank to the floor, her tears staining a wet trail onto the woven mat strips. But even as blinding anger raged white-hot deep within his heart, a small tinge of regret crept over him.

_Gomen nasai, Sakura. It really isn't you I'm angry at._

* * *

"Another mission, Hokage-sama? So soon?" Arching a slender silver eyebrow, Kakashi didn't even bother to disguise his tone of mocking surprise as the Hokage handed him the slender scroll of parchment, the red and black wax of the Hokage seal neatly stamped across it. "And A-Rank too," he mused casually, leisurely unfolding the scroll while Danzō looked on, a look of pure hatred momentarily shattering his usual expressionless calm as he gazed upon the Jonin Commander. "Either Konoha is burning through its budget faster than you can keep up with or you're simply rather eager to see the back of me again." Kakashi lowered the scroll slowly, his one-eyed gaze smouldering as he stared right back at Danzō.

Ignoring the barely veiled insinuation the jonin was throwing at him, Danzō merely replied, "The Fire Daimyo specifically requested that you be in charge of this one. Anyhow, a simple escort mission to Water Country shouldn't take longer than a week."

Kakashi gave a careless shrug. "I will need to be back in time for the naming of candidates for this years' jonin exams."

"I see you've submitted both Naruto and Sakura's name for consideration."

"And I am well within my right to. " Kakashi coolly replied. "Their ninjutsu and taijutsu abilities as well as mission experience are well within the standards I would expect of jonin candidates."

"And may I also remind you that the final decision rests with the Hokage, _Hatake-san_." Danzō's emphasis on the honorific only served to highlight Kakashi's blatant non-usage of them.

Kakashi's fingers tightened on the scroll. Barely suppressing his violent urge to smash a Raikiri at the smug, calculating look Danzō threw him, he forced himself to concentrate on his next words.

"I have already assigned your team for this mission – if you'd arrived an hour earlier perhaps you might have been able to attend the briefing with them. You might notice that your mission scroll states that you are to meet them at six am Saturday morning in front of the village gates, but I told them to come at nine so hopefully they won't have to wait too long."

Such snide remarks had come to characterise most of Kakashi's interactions with Danzo, but he merely allowed it to slide off him. He thanked Kami-sama every day that the Jonin Commander's office was in a separate wing to the Hokage's, so he didn't have to look at Danzō's cold, cruel visage every time he wanted to pop down to the toilet. Although it probably wouldn't have mattered, he was so hardly ever in Konoha anymore these days he would probably have more chance running into Minato-sensei than Danzō if not for the fact that Kakashi had to make weekly progress reports to him.

"After your last mission to Tanigakure, this should be easier than taking dango from a genin," Danzo observed. "Or maybe…this might be too difficult even for you?" Flipping open a mission report that was presumably his, the Hokage scanned through the chicken-scratch scrawl again before pausing, "The enemy shinobi ingested a cyanide pill as soon as he realised he was cornered. No further information on the mercenary syndicate was obtained due to target self-destructing." His eyes were coldly accusing as they bored into the jonin.

Kakashi shrugged lightly. "Basic tactic for concealing information. If I recall, you seem to be a fan of the technique yourself, Hokage-_sama_." Years ago, Sai had demonstrated the seal that Danzo had placed on his tongue which prevented them from divulging any secrets about the Foundation or R.O.O.T, particularly useful in the event that they were tortured or interrogated by enemy forces. The seal would only dissipate upon Danzo's death.

This didn't do anything to improve Danzo's already-black mood. His eyes flashed menacingly as Kakashi blithely replied, "My mission was to eliminate him, one which I successfully carried out. If you want more information on the syndicate, perhaps you should redouble the number of agents you have on espionage missions along the borders of the Elemental Countries. The intel you provided me was so out of date, it was a wonder I managed to track the shinobi down. He was hiding in a cave fifty miles south of Takumi Village, not exactly hiding in the village as your spies claimed."

With that, he stalked out of the room.

Just as he slumped heavily back into his chair and was taking out Icha Icha Tactics in preparation for a comfortable afternoon of reading to sooth his annoyance, he was suddenly greeted by a large pile of reports being unceremoniously dumped onto his desk, which was soon followed by another worryingly large stack of papers. Peering resignedly from behind the two mountains of paperwork obscuring his vision, he glimpsed two big hazel eyes staring fiercely back at him.

"You'd do well to finish that by tonight, Hatake-senpai. The meeting with the Daimyo is tomorrow afternoon."

Kakashi groaned, burying his fingers into his silvery mop of hair and tugging agitatedly. "Are those the mission records and expenses incurred for the last month?"

"For the last _six _months."

"I can't finish them by tomorrow afternoon."

"You will, unless you want the elders to close down the Pink Bookstore. They've been threatening to do that for the last six meetings since you've ran late on your paperwork for every single meeting this year."

"You'll stay to help me write out a summary won't you?"

Kagura threw him an amused look, a playful grin quirking her lips at Kakashi's almost-plea. "I don't think so, Hatake-senpai. I have a hot date tonight," she teased.

"I promise you those reports will be so exciting that you won't want to leave until morning. Plus, you have the bonus of spending a full twelve hours in the wonderfully witty and intelligent company of the one and only Hatake Kakashi," he retorted. "How many women can claim they had the great Copy Ninja all to themselves for one night?" Kagura's ability to match him insult for insult usually made for some great late night banter, and Kakashi would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy those overnight sessions with his somewhat lovely brunette assistant. She was much sharper than the average chunin kunoichi, and her appointment as his personal assistant last year had come as a big relief to the paperwork-phobic jonin.

She merely flashed him another mischievous smile. "So I'll be ordering the usual salmon bento for two then?" Every time those accursed meetings rolled around every month, Kagura never failed to make sure that they had a generous supply of salmon rice and hot herbal stimulant tea to get them through a night full of desperate scrambling and feverish writing. And even then he usually couldn't get through more than a quarter of the reports and accounts.

_I really ought to tell Danzō that I need to be in the office more_, he frowned. _Although he'd probably just use that as an excuse to fire me for being lazy._

"You're a lifesaver, Kagura," Kakashi replied, giving her his best charming eye crinkle, the one that sent girls swooning with little hearts over their eyes and men rushing home to secretly practice eye crinkling in front of their mirrors. "I don't know how I'd be able to survive this role without you."

"I'm sure I can think of several interesting ways you can make it up to me," came the saucy reply. "How about dinner tomorrow?"

"Kagura, you know I spend Friday nights with Sakura."

"You mean you used to." _Until she swapped you for Friday night tomato soup at the Uchiha mansion. _

He felt a sudden stab of annoyance at her smug tone.

Noticing her boss's obvious deterioration in mood, Kagura switched tacks. "I'm glad to see that you returned safely from your mission, Hatake-senpai. I was missing you terribly these lonely nights," she finished with a flirty giggle.

He laced his gloved fingers in frustration. "My target turned up fifty miles south of where our intel said he'd be. It's incredibly worrying – either Danzo isn't stationing sufficient shinobi around the area such that it's becoming easier for the syndicate members to give us the slip, or they know that we're watching them."

Kagura ran her fingers through his thick silvery strands, murmuring as the jonin lapsed into a thoughtful silence. "Or maybe, you're just not looking in the right places."

* * *

**A/N**: Apologies that it's not as action-packed as the last chapter, there were a couple of lengthy explanations I had to get through to set the premise for the coming chapters. The action and intrigue resumes in the next instalment, so hopefully you don't lose interest just yet! As always, reviews and constructive feedback are much loved and appreciated.

librastar x

Gomen nasai - Sorry

Katon: Gokkakyuu no Jutsu – Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique

Takumi no Sato – Village of Artisans

Tanigakure – Village Hidden in Valleys


	3. Chapter 2: Dance of the Bloody Sword

**Omiai**

_For the solace we seek, the suit of shining armour becomes a keen and bloody sword. _

-Rush, "Armor and Sword"

**Last Chapter:**

_You know, Naruto and I really thought you were gone this time. I've already lost one teacher, I don't think I could stand losing another."_

…_**.**_

"_Another mission, Hokage-sama? So soon?"_

"_The Fire Daimyo specifically requested that you be in charge of this one. Anyhow, a simple escort mission to Water Country shouldn't take longer than a week."_

…

"_I'm sure I can think of several interesting ways you can make it up to me," came the saucy reply. "How about dinner tomorrow?"_

"_Kagura, you know I spend Friday nights with Sakura."_

"_You mean you used to. Until she swapped you for Friday night tomato soup at the Uchiha mansion."_

…

**A/N:** Dedicated to Rezaria, for her amazingly insightful reviews, and for always being able to see underneath the underneath every chapter. Special mentions to Prescripto, Neon, Caeria and harvestangel for taking some time out of their busy lives to leave a review, your support is always loved and appreciated : )

**Chapter 2 - Dance of the Bloody Sword**

"So that's a total of 568 missions completed on average per month, with a mean wage earned of 250,000 ryo per jonin," Koharu glanced at the scroll Kakashi had laid out in front of him, making a few scribbles at the side. "And the mission completion rate is…" double checking the calculations, the elderly shinobi paused momentarily to consider the figures. "…an astounding 95%." The surprise in his voice was palpable.

"Impressive figures," Homura agreed, as Kakashi inclined his head modestly. "These are good times for everyone, especially in light of Konoha's continued membership of the Allied Shinobi Forces."

The Fire Daimyo fanned himself excitedly. "Great work, Hatake-san! You and Danzo make an excellent team if I dare so, isn't that right Danzo?"

"I think I deserve most of the credit for matching teams with shinobi actually having the capabilities to carry them out," Danzo's harsh reply took almost everyone by surprise.

The Daimyo looked a little putout, but he seemingly ignored the obviously hostile relationship between the two men. "But surely Hatake-san deserves some of the credit for training and commanding jonin of such excellent calibre! What was the total mission income inflow for this month again, Danzo?"

"150 million ryo," Danzo growled.

"That's more than double what we were at last year," the Daimyo pointed out.

Kakashi sat quietly as the Fire Daimyo continued extolling his virtues and incensing Danzo, who looked as if he wanted nothing better than to strangle the prattling leader with his silly flappy headgear, the long strings and tags often getting tangled with the silk banner behind him. His hand was itching to take out Icha Icha Tactics from his hip pouch, but he resisted the urge. Blatantly reading Jiraiya's bestselling porn to irritate the elders during village meetings was great fun, but even he knew that doing the same thing now would likely decimate the entirety of the favour and adoration he currently seemed to enjoy from the leader of Fire Country.

"…will be counting on you to keep my granddaughter safe!" The Daimyo's last words jolted him out of his semi-reverie. "Hmm?" he gracefully tried to cover his lapse of attention with a badly disguised cough, which Danzo shot him an angry look for.

"You will be escorting my granddaughter to her wedding in Water Country tomorrow, will you not?" Kakashi blinked a little, before nodding. "Ah."

"Splendid!" The Daimyo exclaimed, snapping his fan shut with a sharp _click_. "After all, what better way to show off the strength and might of Fire Country than to send along our best jonin to guard my beautiful Kazumi! Maybe the sight of Kakashi-san will remind her husband that he ought to behave very carefully during the wedding night, those Water lords can get awfully bawdy at times…" Kakashi felt a small ball of unease curdle his stomach.

"Beware of thieves and mercenaries," Homura cut in, as she nodded grimly at Kakashi. "The countryside is usually crawling with them this time of the year –the warm weather brings out the worst in everyone."

Of course Kakashi knew that, seeing as he usually averaged 15 escort missions annually while Homura hadn't set foot out of the village for the last 20 years, but he politely replied, "I will bear that in mind, Homura-san."

Koharu added, "All of Fire Country will be depending on you to bring Kazumi-hime to her destination safely, Hatake-san." The darkly significant look the Konoha elder sent his way, as well as the stiff emphasis he placed on the word 'all' was not lost on the Jonin Commander.

"Has Gousuke-sama indicated when he will sign the contract?" One of the councillors turned to Koharu and Homura.

The elderly kunoichi nodded. "As soon as the wedding is over, a meeting has been arranged for next Friday. Everything is in place, all that remains is for Kazumi-hime to be safely delivered to his palace on Thursday." Again, everyone in the room glanced at Kakashi, but true to his reputation the Copy Ninja remained as stoic as ever, the slight slouch of his posture suggesting his usual detached sang-froid apathy but there was a slight tension to his shoulders that escaped most everyone's notice.

Save Danzo, who only smirked to himself.

Humming tunelessly on the way out after the meeting ended, Kakashi wondered idly if he should join Naruto for ramen at Ichiraku or grab some sushi for his dinner. Pausing briefly to flip to Chapter 10 of Icha Icha Tactics, Kakashi decided that he probably didn't want to listen to two hours of Naruto exaggerating how he'd killed a thousand evil ninja while Sasuke grunted in monosyllabic time if he wanted to find enough time to pack for tomorrow. Besides, the sushi bar was much closer to the hospital, and if he remembered correctly Sakura usually worked the night shift on alternate Fridays. Maybe this was one of them, and hopefully he'd have enough time to pop by and say a quick goodbye before he left tomorrow morning.

Rather belatedly on the way there, he vaguely recalled that Naruto had left on a mission to Kiri last week and Kakashi gently chided himself for missing the opportunity to eat his ramen in peace for the first time in years.

The small sushi eatery was usually crowded during weeknights thanks to their weekly dinner menus costing less than 30 ryo a set. Furious chopping sounds and noisy shouts filled the air, as waiters rushed around trying to get each freshly prepared plate of sushi to their respective tables while consciously avoiding the eyes of their hungry customers. Groaning a little as he spied the long queue, Kakashi flipped open Icha Icha Tactics again. It was times likes this that he was glad he always had something to do to pass the time.

"Hatake-senpai!"

Lifting his head slowly, he saw Kagura walking towards him. "Well, fancy meeting you here, senpai," she purred as she slid into line behind him, lightly touching his right arm. "I didn't know Sakura was a fan of sushi." A strong, lemony whiff of perfume accompanied her, and Kakashi tried hard not to gag even underneath his mask. The only other woman he knew who was a fan of that citronella aroma was Anko, and it was one of the reasons the Copy Ninja kept the hell away from her.

Brushing aside the knowing look she gave him, he shrugged. "She isn't," he explained. "I'm here to order take-out. I need to go home and pack for tomorrow."

"Ah yes, your big mission." Twirling a lock of dark hair in her fingers, she looked coyly at him. "Well since you're already here, it wouldn't hurt to stay and have sushi with me wouldn't it, senpai? By the time you get back, the rice will have gone all cold and lumpy."

Kakashi looked down at the wide, puppy-dog-eyed expression she gave him. He had lost track of the number of times women throughout his life had flashed him that look, fluttering their eyelashes and giving him that half pleading, half come-hither look. Sometimes he took them up on their offer, sometimes he slit their throat in the middle of the deed; but he always left before the sun rose. Women loved the whole enigmatic, "masked man" card he played so the Sandaime had often assigned him to seduction missions. He sighed. Part of him wanted to brush her off with the excuse that he was tired and go home and have his sushi in front of the television, but another, smaller part of him whispered that it had been a long time since he'd spent Friday night dinner without the sole company of another takeaway and Icha Icha. And he usually only took half an hour to pack, tops.

There was the matter of that lemony smell, though.

"Besides, you owe me for yesterday's all-nighter," she waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Lifting his arms in resignation, he reluctantly let the harried waiter lead them to one of the smaller, cosier tables near the back of the restaurant. It was relatively private, being somewhat secluded from the main hustle and bustle of the kitchen but it was still visible from the front of the shop. After settling on the nigiri sushi set and a cup of ocha, he leaned back casually. "The elders really liked that report you made summarising the mission stats for the last six months – it saved them straining their poor eyes reading pages and pages of documents and highlighted all the best parts to boot."

Kagura winked at him. "Behind every good Jonin Commander is an even better assistant." Giving him another flirtatious look, she ventured, "I hope you're thinking of ways to express your appreciation, Hatake-senpai. It's not just every man that I would spend all my nights with running through stacks and stacks of mission reports for. A kunoichi does have other _interests_."

Kakashi sighed internally, his right eye drooping a little as he considered the young woman in front of him. As her superior both in terms of rank and age, he really didn't feel it was appropriate to give her any more encouragement; the last thing he needed, what with the stress of his ever growing mountain of paperwork and the increasingly likely prospect that he might not come home from the next mission Danzo sent him on was some girl complicating his life. Even if she was young, attractive and clearly smitten with him.

Or his power. Or rank. He had his suspicions.

Halfway through the meal, Kagura suddenly frowned. "You're not eating, senpai. Is something wrong?" Kakashi glanced down at his untouched sushi plate. The rice was surely getting cold and lumpy now, it would have tasted a lot better in front of the television and Icha Icha Tactics in his right hand.

She looked shrewdly at him. "It's the mask isn't it?"

He gave a non-committal shrug. "It's why I prefer to eat alone," he replied pointedly.

"So I suppose she's seen it then?"

Kakashi looked up from the succulent salmon sushi he'd been staring at hungrily for the past twenty minutes. "Mmm? Who?"

"Sakura of course. You don't expect me to believe that you sit and wait for her to finish every meal before you actually start eating?" came the rather peevish reply.

She hadn't of course, but Kakashi was starting to feel rather defensive at the obvious swipes she was making at his ex-student. "You seem very interested in her," he deadpanned, trying to stifle his growling stomach by sipping his hot ocha.

"It's not her I'm interested in."

The boldness of her reply took him by surprise. Training his mismatched gaze at his kohai, Kakashi sighed. "Look, Kagura. You're the best assistant I ever had, and I really do value you. But I just don't think…"

Before he could finish, she had leaned forwards and pressed her lips against his masked ones.

…

"Not sushi again, Ino-pig! Didn't we just have it on Wednesday?" Sakura groaned as the Yamanaka eagerly dragged her down the hospital steps to Makoto Sushi, ignoring the other kunoichi's mumbled whines and grumbles of protest.

"Oh stop complaining so much, Forehead! They're two minutes away from work, make the only sushi in town that doesn't taste like cardboard and paper and best of all, they're cheap. I just blew half my latest paycheque on this amazing new dress I saw in that shop next to Ichiraku's, you'll love it when you see me in it. It's made of black velvet and trimmed with fishnet and mesh…" Sakura tuned out as Ino continued babbling about all the new clothes she and Tenten had bought at the sales last week, her thoughts wandering to a certain silver-haired jonin friend of hers, he was due to leave for a mission tomorrow…. when she distantly heard the Yamanaka heir say something like, "Hey Forehead, isn't today Sasuke-kun's birthday?"

Sakura stood stock-still.

"Well?" the blonde probed. "I thought you had plans to celebrate it with him tonight. Unless," she laughed, "…you've planned a private party just for him tonight in the bedroom…?"

"Stop it, Ino-Pig."

Something about the raw sharpness in the pinkette's tone struck Ino like a Chidori to the skin. Switching to a gentler tone that didn't often cross her lips, she put her hand on Sakura's shoulder. "Hey Forehead? Is everything alright with you and Sasuke? Because lately it doesn't seem like you guys have been spending much time tog…" Her voice trailed off as she noticed where Sakura's gaze had riveted on. Squinting, Ino stood on her tiptoes as she tried to see above the dozens of heads that were dotting the humongous queue at the sushi bar. Gaping a little as she finally spotted what the stony-faced kunoichi was staring at, she frowned. "Is that Kakashi-sensei and his assist…?!"

"Let's go, Ino."

The blonde Yamanaka started in surprise. "But we already got here!" she half-pouted, putting her hands on her hips. "And look, there's a free table right next to Kakashi…"

"Let's go, Ino. I don't think I feel like eating sushi tonight after all."

Sighing, the blonde cast a suspicious look at the silver-haired jonin currently locking lips with his assistant before hurrying after her rapidly retreating friend.

…

Warm and soft.

Sweet and addictive.

It was as tantalising as a forbidden fruit, yet as against his wishes it was, Kakashi could only savour the delicious softness of Kagura's hot, open-mouthed kisses. Gently pushing her tongue into his mouth, she whimpered softly in disappointment as her efforts only met with the thin, cotton fabric of the mask obscuring his face. Moaning throatily, the brunette raised a hand to gently yank it off but he abruptly caught her wrist in an iron-grip. "Don't even think about it," he warned hoarsely, opening his eyes to stare icily at her. Control came back to him in an instant, even as guilt began to flood his mind. He ignored it.

A flash of pink at the corner of his eye caught his attention, and Kakashi wrenched his lips away from Kagura's. Was his imagination playing tricks on him or had that been…? A quick scan of the room revealed no sign of her. It must have been a trick of the light, or the trick of a guilty conscience.

_What guilty conscience?_ A small voice argued. _You're a free man. A single man._ She's_ not going to mind or care what you do. _

_I told you, it's not _her_._

Inner Kakashi continued admonishing him. _Then why do you hate tomato soup so much now?_

"That was out of line, Kagura."

The intensity of his stare didn't seem to scare her, as she only leaned in closer to him. "But you seemed to enjoy it, ne senpai?" Her lemony breath tingled his lips as she breathed heavily, moving in to close in on his mouth again.

Getting to his feet, he tossed a few ryo notes onto the table.

Kagura's expression darkened instantly and she hissed at him, "What do you think you're doing? You can't just kiss me and leave like that!"

Ignoring the half murderous, half mortified look on his assistant's face, Kakashi breezily replied, "So go on and kiss and tell on me. I don't mind," before vanishing in a flurry of leaves.

….

"You're offering us a very attractive proposal, Danzo-sama. I'm not quite sure what to make of it."

Wordlessly, Danzo poured himself another cup of tea from the fine white bone-china teapot Hiroshi's wife had laid out in front of him earlier that evening. He could feel their eyes boring into him as the Konoha leader calmly sipped his drink, his face as emotionless as an ANBU mask. "A good offer is one in which the other side will not be able to refuse," he said, fanning the slight spirals of steam that curled from the surface of the drink. Genmaicha - fresh from the woven baskets of pickers in the Land of Tea. Exceedingly difficult to grow due to its delicate nature, and extortionately priced whenever it did surface. No doubt Yakuza Hiroshi had relieved some fat, deep-pocketed merchant of his cargo along the winding roads that surrounded the Lands of Fire, Earth and Wind, passing through the minor villages of Ishigakure, Kusagakure and Takigakure that were so oft-frequented by the cargo-laden wagons of wealthy merchants from all over the Elemental Nations. Or perhaps his raiders had decided to "help themselves" to some of the precious cargo aboard the trading ships that regularly docked at the numerous port towns around the Uzushiagakure region.

Hiroshi merely leaned back in his plush armchair, the delicately embroidered sakura blossoms in gold thread shimmering softly in the dim light of the meeting room. His blue hakama was stretched tightly across his heaving belly, threatening to burst open every time he took a deep puff of his tobacco pipe. His mouth remained unmoving, but his eyes glinted as they followed Danzo's movements.

"And if we do refuse, Danzo-sama?" The speaker, Gokudo Aizen had been a powerfully built man in his youth, but age had hunched his back, knotted his skin and turned his hair white. A gold-topped walking cane rested at the foot of his chair, and his voice was no louder than a child whispering. But he radiated a certain power, and the hunger still shone brightly in his dark eyes.

The Rokudaime Hokage merely shrugged. "Then you will bear the full might of Konoha upon you, and will likely face punishment for your crimes by your village leaders and the Daimyos of the land. I do not imagine they will take kindly to robbery and looting of their merchants' cargo."

"And you would presume to live long enough to relay that information to your village and Daimyo, Danzo-sama?" Aizen continued, a slight sneer entering his voice.

"Let us not waste time by pretending otherwise. A deal as such would be beneficial to everyone in this room, while a refusal will only be to your detriment." He leaned forward. "I have been watching your organisation for a very long time, gentlemen. I know that you have spies in my village who leak information to you on trade routes and shinobi trackers sent to eliminate your ninja. Carry out my orders, and I will leave your syndicate free to continue its operations. Go against me, and I will have you eradicated faster than you can say 'shinobi'."

An uncomfortable silence reigned.

"You ask difficult things of us, Danzo-sama." The light, humorous voice of Genseida Akira broke in, as he reached out a slender, pale hand almost like a woman's to take a piece of shuto. As he popped the small piece into his mouth, a squirt of pink juice ran down his chin and onto his grey silk hakama. A few grams of the highly treasured skipjack tuna entrails he had just scoffed down, sold on the black market would be enough to pay the wages of two senior jonin on an S-Rank mission. He seemed utterly nonplussed with the threat Danzo had just dropped. Wealthy and influential businessmen, particularly those that were among the most powerful in Fire Country and currently heading a highly lucrative mercenary syndicate were not often cowed by threats such as the one just made. Their covert operations had gone unnoticed by the powers-that-ruled the land for years, and Akira did not believe that they were in serious danger of being extinguished.

"The leaders are firm in their belief that the minor villages have no place in the Allied Shinobi Forces, and they will likely rather die than surrender and swear allegiance to any of the Big Five Hidden Villages, including Konoha. Replacing and brainwashing village leaders, let alone three are no easy feats. They take time, and money – both of which we are in scarce supply of," he mused, licking his fingers.

"Both of which you can reap back hundredfold should my proposal be followed through," Danzo replied, steepling his fingers on the armrest of his own plush chair. "Surely when choosing a new leader, one would expect to name a man that was sympathetic to his own causes and affairs. In any event, I am sure the people of Ishi, Taki and Kusa could probably do with a change of _management_. They will likely view your new appointments as a favour to them."

"And how sure can we be that you will follow through with whatever you have promised us?" Hiroshi spoke up, his flabby cheeks red with sweat in the sweltering heat of Fire Country's summer. His fat fingers could barely close round the miniscule sides of his teacup, the occasional flashes of red, green and blue of the many jewelled rings he wore blinding Danzo whenever he looked too long.

Danzo spent a long time staring into the empty depths of his teacup, before answering. "For starters, you have my permission to plunder all the wagons and carriages that will be coming your way tomorrow. Take everything you want, and leave _**no one**_ but the princess alive."

…

The rain poured mercilessly down, and Kakashi squinted at the hazy outline of the road ahead that was being obscured by the thunderous streaks lashing down around them. He shook his head vigorously, letting fly a shower of rainwater beads. Next to him, Konohamaru wound his scarf tighter around his neck and pulled his flak jacket close, covering his already-drenched pale green shirt. The young Sarutobi cast an envious glance at Aoba, the tokubetsu-jonin seemingly unperturbed by the rain bouncing harmlessly off his dark shades although the chilly wind did cause him to cough occasionally. The medic of the team, Nami was dabbing her face with an equally sodden handkerchief, wearing a miserable expression as she sneezed again and again. As a newly qualified jonin field medic, it appeared that the kunoichi was having a little trouble readjusting to the harsh conditions that often accompanied mission work after several years in the hospital.

Noting how everyone walking next to him were both coughing and dragging their feet, the jonin leader signalled for the entourage to come to a halt. The men eagerly reached for their hot water flasks with sighs of relief.

After a quick drink from his container, Kakashi strode past the numerous wagons to the middle of the procession where the ornate royal carriage was located. It was made out of a beautiful reddish brown wood, so shiny and polished Kakashi could glimpse his sweaty, dishevelled reflection on its surface, although it was now blurry with the pouring rain. Knocking softly on the side of the window, the silver haired Jonin Commander inclined his head as the silk curtains slowly parted. "Is there anything that I can be of use of to your Majesty, Kazumi-hime?"

Although at any other time, Kakashi was usually grateful that his ninja attire merely consisted of his undershirt and flak jacket, today the jonin would have given anything for a few extra layers to help insulate a little of his body heat. Clad in the elaborate twelve-layered silken kimono or jūnihitoe that was commonly the court attire of all noble ladies, Kakashi briefly admired the delicate stitching, intricate patterns and tiny jewels inlaid in the fabrics that must have taken weeks to painstakingly craft and sew by hand. Canary yellow silk lined with small amber buttons, royal blue gossamer with lace trim, jade green chiffon and lapis lazuli, vermilion red in a floral brocade– each layer probably cost more than what Kakashi made in a year; the Daimyo had evidently spared no expense in having his granddaughter look nothing short of her spectacular best for her presentation to the Water Lord's court. However, it soon became glaringly obvious to him that poor Princess Kazumi would have given anything in the world to be rid of the magnificent garment. Despite the roaring wind and chilly streaks of rain outside, her pale cheeks were a violent shade of crimson, and wild streaks of sweat ran in rivulets down her face. Dark eyes pinched and weary, she kept fidgeting in a vain attempt to find a more comfortable position. The long ebony hair cascading down her shoulders looked almost as heavy as the extravagant raiment she was bundled up in.

The princess looked up at him with an expression that was almost as desperate as a thirsty dog, her tongue hanging out as if she was panting for water. "When are we going to be reaching this damn lord's palace?" she gasped, fanning herself vigorously with a red silken fan very much like the ones Kakashi often saw her grandfather using. At four and ten, Princess Kazumi was a little on the young side to be married off, but in the highly convoluted and manipulative politics of arranged marriages, Kakashi knew that the smaller the number, the greater the bargaining power the bride's broker would hold.

"I'm sorry if the journey has been of some discomfort to you, hime but please be patient. We're only about a day and a half's journey from Water Country," Kakashi responded soothingly, giving Kazumi what he hoped was one of his more charming eye crinkles. "You'll soon be by your future husband's side."

"I couldn't care less about him – I don't even know what he looks like," the young girl suddenly huffed, beckoning to one of her servants to hand her a drink of water. Throwing Kakashi a quick glare, she slammed the empty glass onto the seat next to her, nearly shattering the fine ivory porcelain. "Jiji doesn't know anything about him either, except that he's really rich. And he's younger than me." As she looked up at the Jonin Commander, her eyes lost some of the defiant fire that had momentarily flared up and she mumbled, "Is it true that Daichi-sama is only marrying me so that his father will sign some contract with Jiji?"

Kakashi cleared his throat uncomfortably, scratching the back of his silvery thatch a little awkwardly as he pondered how best to answer the girl. "All of Fire Country is grateful for the great service you are doing your nation by agreeing to join the nobility of Fire and Water together in marriage," he hedged evasively. "I'm sure Daichi-sama will be very happy with the new wife he is getting." Kakashi tried to crinkle his eye in a reassuring manner despite the rain beating down on his exposed brow and eyes, causing him to blink repeatedly.

Kazumi fell silent, and Kakashi felt a pang of sympathy as her expression turned to one of forlorn resignation. She wasn't the first beautiful scion he'd escorted to give her hand away to some powerful foreign lord, and she definitely wasn't the first noble daughter to have been bargained away in exchange for a throne, a war, a contract; for the glue that in olden days had been and many still considered to be the only way to properly seal an alliance – was the bond of marriage.

Omiai. Kakashi was no stranger to it.

His own mother had been the product of an arranged marriage, a blushing civilian bride of sixteen brought over from a small neighbouring village when Sakumo was almost thirty. Kakashi's grandmother, the formidable matriarch of the then Hatake clan had brokered the arrangement in exchange for the cheap sale of the bride's family's farmlands to the Hatake. Though timid and shy, she'd grown to love her shinobi husband, and when she'd died shortly before Kakashi's third nameday, Sakumo had wept bitter tears. He'd never been the same since.

As the procession slowly continued down the slippery, muddy roads that ran past Uzushiagakure, heading deeper and deeper towards Water Country, Kakashi wondered briefly if his mother would have done the same for him had she lived. Even in a ninja village such as Konoha, arranged marriages were still common, particularly among the old and wealthy clans such as the Hyuuga and the Uchiha. Their lifestyle was hard, brutal and demanding – leaving little to no time for socialising and most shinobi from such families were often mildly happy to accept whatever match their parents had chosen for them. Shinobi were no strangers to the burden of duty, and they merely took marriage as another such task required of them. Nobler clans such as those aforementioned used it as an exercise to select the quality of their gene pools in an attempt to preserve the so-called "purity" of their bloodlines, and as a valuable tool to further or retain clan alliances.

Kakashi, for all his popularity with the ladies had never actually seriously entertained the idea of settling down, or even having a steady relationship; his line of work was too unpredictable and the last thing he wanted to get himself saddled with was the very messy business of finally troubling himself to get a wife and children but conveniently dying in the middle of it. He'd enjoyed the company of many beautiful women throughout the years: innocent civilian girls awestruck by his shinobi status, tough kunoichi with their "go-ahead-impress-me" attitude, villainous temptresses he'd had to murder after having his (pardon the pun) wicked way with…but none had managed to hold his attention longer than a kunai's throw. Yes, some had captured his attention and interest in more than one way, but he always had trouble remembering their faces let alone their name after the night had come to an end. Most of the girls he had grown up with in Konoha were either taken (Kurenai) or plain crazy (Anko), so Kakashi had long ago made the conscious decision that if he ever did have the urge one day to continue the Hatake name, it would probably be with some nice chunin or village girl.

But although the silver-haired Jonin Commander had not seriously considered making any girl Mrs. Hatake just yet, that didn't mean that he was opposed to the idea of relationships at all. It was rare, but it wasn't impossible. That episode with Kagura the night before he left; Kakashi knew someone like her fit the bill for what he would like in a girl – Kagura was smart, funny and clearly interested in him. Plus, she was a kunoichi. Whether she would make good wife material remained to be seen, but at the very least he ought to be giving girls like her a chance. As Pakkun kept nagging him, he was already thirty-five years old and he didn't have many more years to keep playing the waiting game…he felt a familiar ache of disappointment but he shifted his thoughts determinedly to the rainy road ahead.

The day wore on, and Kakashi called for several more rest stops, each dragging on longer and longer than the one before. Thankfully, the sky started clearing by late afternoon and the thunderous rain subsided into nothing more than a light drizzle. The damp, muddy smell of the dirt roads were increasingly tinged by a salty tang in the air and as the sun dipped lower and lower below the horizon, he finally spied the jagged coastline and endless stretch of blue sea that marked the borders of Fire and Water Country. Rolling the scroll open in front of him, Kakashi ran his fingers lightly over the curved dotted lines and considered for a moment. "If memory serves, there should be an inn somewhere nearby that we can spend the night at before resuming the last leg of our journey tomorrow. It's too dangerous to attempt crossing the sea by night, and the Princess will likely be in good need of a rest," he said to the other three.

Nami nodded gratefully at him, and even Aoba wore a look of great relief. The weather around the islands of Water Country was usually foggy and rainy at any time of the year; and July in particular was often full of gale-like winds and fearsome storms in the night. Temperatures had also been known to dip close to the negatives in the early hours of the morning, or the high single digits at best. Nobody had been too keen to spend the night exposed to the cruelty of the elements, even if it was just for a few hours.

Signalling to the wagon drivers to follow him, Kakashi steered them towards a southeasterly route, down a lesser-travelled path that diverged a little way from the main roads. The inn was about two miles down that direction, and a little more than ten miles from the port town where they could catch a ship to Water Country tomorrow morning. As the last rays of light began to fade, Kakashi suddenly sensed that something was amiss. Like a distant memory, the presence seemed to be hovering near the edge of his consciousness, so light and innocuous a lesser shinobi would have discounted it but Kakashi was experienced enough to recognise chakra masking– no doubt about it, they were being watched. A split second later, the entire convoy had been surrounded by dark figures and the dying scream of a guard echoed spine-chillingly amid the dark, empty trees.

Instinctively, Kakashi tilted open his headband to reveal his activated Sharingan. "Formation, now!" he barked at his team members, who leapt into their practised positions at his command. Anticipating the possibility of a mercenary raid or attempted kidnapping, Kakashi had earlier drilled Konohamaru, Aoba and Nami on the strategy that would be employed in such a scenario. To spread out the combat prowess of each group, Konohamaru and Kakashi would both be in charge of leading the fighting and trying to draw the enemies away from the main carriage while Nami and Aoba would station themselves on either side of the carriage to protect Kazumi-hime.

"Katon: Haisekishō!" Kakashi watched Konohamaru's scorching screen of gunpowder burn and badly wound at least five enemy attackers, while the remaining few were struck down by the barrage of shuriken he sent at them undetected through the smoke. Smiling slightly as he recognised both his grandfather's Kage Shuriken Technique and uncle's signature Katon jutsu, Kakashi concentrated on ducking the roundhouse kick his opponent was directing at him, before smashing his fist into the man's ribs. A satisfying crack sounded, and before the enemy had even collapsed to the ground, Kakashi had already thrown another three of his defeated comrades on top of him.

The silver haired man narrowed his eyes as his surveyed their prone bodies. Their taijutsu skills were barely above the average chunin, and their relatively small number coupled with a lack of tactical discipline had rendered taking them out nothing short of routine work for the experienced jonin. The success of their ambush had been heavily dependent on the element of surprise, which had been largely negated by the superior skill of the Konoha shinobi. It was likely that they were nothing more than ordinary roadside bandits looking to raid their wagons.

Narrowly dodging the kunai that whistled past his left earlobe, Kakashi whirled around and swung his own kunai to meet the man's blade. Dimly aware that five more enemies were surrounding him, he deftly twisted his body and with the prodigious speed he was famous for, knocked his opponent's kunai out of his hand before thrusting his own deep into his stomach. Twisting it violently, Kakashi yanked it out in a shower of blood and guts before sending his own volley of lightning chakra-infused shuriken at the remaining bandits. Electrocuted by the high voltage projectiles, they soon fell to the ground writhing, before falling unconscious.

Turning around to check up on Konohamaru, the elder jonin was relieved to see that the young Sarutobi had also dispatched of his enemies with minimal fuss. A cocky grin stretched his lips as he gave Kakashi a huge thumbs' up. "If only Naruto-niichan could see this! I wouldn't be so confident of being the next Hokage if I were him, heehee!"

But before Kakashi could respond, Nami gave a sudden scream and the Jonin Commander rushed back to the middle of the convoy.

"Futon: Kaze no Yaiba!" A powerful gust of wind whipped through the air, followed by a sharp, slicing sound then two thuds.

Kakashi stopped short, a great chasm of horror ripping through his stomach as Konohamaru's scream of anguish reverberated in his ears. It was a wail of despair and pain, a heart-rending sound that Kakashi had heard far too often throughout his life.

Mad with shock at the suddenness of what had just happened, Konohamaru launched himself at the black-garbed nin standing calmly on top of the royal carriage, trampling the bleeding bodies of Nami and Aoba casually underfoot. Even from six feet away Kakashi could see that the wind blades had sliced their bodies countless times, leaving cuts as deep as a man's finger. Blood was gushing freely from the two jonin's wounds, their faces growing paler and paler as their blood and life force drained away. Kakashi had seen this technique before when fighting shinobi of the Hidden Sand Village; a short-range Futon jutsu that was both simple and deadly; in the absence of immediate medical attention on the battlefield Nami and Aoba would haemorrhage to death in mere seconds from the multiple slash wounds. Kakashi felt a wave of grief crash down on him, but there was no time to mourn so he resolutely pushed it away with a chillingly practised ease.

The shinobi that had attacked them wore no flak jacket and his forehead was free of any hitae-ate. Instead, he was clad in a loose-fitting black shirt and pants, with mesh armour underneath. A standard-issue katana was strapped to his back. A hip pouch presumably for his tools and smaller weaponry was slung loosely around the red belt tied carelessly along his waist. The entirety of his face was covered, save for the slits of his eyes. His build was small for a ninja, almost petite but all in all he did not look like someone who would be remembered in the middle of a crowd.

In other words, the perfect shinobi.

Tossing the corpses to the ground in callous contempt, the enemy nin made no move to dodge Konohamaru's oncoming Rasengan, staring calmly at the spinning blue ball of chakra the boy was aiming for his head. A millisecond before it was about to make contact, he vanished in a puff of smoke.

"Konohamaru, behind you!" Kakashi yelled, suddenly finding his voice again. Berating himself for his momentary lapse, the jonin leapt towards the stunned Konohamaru, and struck the enemy shinobi with a Chidori before he could even lay a finger on the boy. But the body vanished with a 'pop' sound, and Kakashi had to somersault mid-air to dodge the powerful chop that was being aimed at his solar plexus.

Anyone that could make a Kage Bunshin was likely to be of jonin level or above, so Kakashi wasn't too surprised to find that his attacker easily dodged the various punches and kicks he threw at him. Twisting away from a series of blows that Kakashi had made to his ribs, the enemy shinobi grabbed the katana from his back, swinging the sword in a graceful semi-circle as he shouted, "Mikazuki no Mai!"

His lone eye widened in shock, as three of the nin suddenly assaulted him from his three blind spots: behind, above and the side, their swords all mirroring the crescent moon swing that the shinobi had performed a moment ago. Konoha's best and last user of the technique, his colleague, Hayate had once told him that if any one of those clones scored a direct hit, it would result in a fatal wound, most likely severing the carotid artery in his neck. As the clones swung downwards with ferocious force, Konohamaru cried out in shock as he watched a trapped Kakashi stumble as all three blades connected with his body.

However, 'Kakashi' soon dissolved in a crackle of blue lightning, revealing it to be nothing but a Raiton Kage Bunshin.

"Raikiri!" The real Kakashi appeared from seemingly thin air, ready to hurl his fistful of blinding lightning chakra at the enemy shinobi. However, it seemed that he had anticipated this move and Kakashi's eye creased in anger as his fist crashed into a mud wall that hastily rose to meet his attack, the Doryūheki jutsu absorbing and nullifying the potency of the Raikiri.

Several more similarly clad attackers soon dropped down overhead and before he knew it, Konohamaru and himself were outnumbered 6 to 1. The enemy shinobi seemed to have no interest in the contents of the wagons, making a beeline for both of them instead. It made Kakashi all the more suspicious that this was an attempted kidnapping or robbery that had been carefully orchestrated rather than a chance bandit attack as he had initially suspected, since it usually made sense to eliminate the shinobi on guard before attempting to abduct the target, especially if the number of guards were small.

And with Nami and Aoba killed thanks to the brutal Blade of Wind technique the lead shinobi had employed, Kakashi didn't like the odds that were suddenly being stacked up against them. His blood was pounding, as he panted from a mixture of adrenaline and fighters' instinct that awoke in him every time he was on the battlefield. He was a fighter, a killer, a shinobi. Standing back to back with Konohamaru, Kakashi muttered, "These guys are different from the first ones. It's likely that they're jonin level or above, so keep your eyes on them at all times. Especially the lead one." To his credit, the young man didn't even flinch despite their obvious numerical disadvantage and a grim look of understanding passed briefly between them. As a veteran ninja, Kakashi had faced and survived worse odds than this during his time in ANBU, but even he knew that their chances of survival were slim; especially if their opponents were anywhere near the skill level of their leader.

From the corner of his eye, he glanced three dark shinobi standing where Aoba and Nami had been stationed flanking either side of the royal carriage. There wasn't a single sound coming from within, and Kakashi guessed that Kazumi-hime had probably deduced what had happened from the obvious disturbance and was probably hiding beneath her seat, petrified. Others surrounded the convoy and were holding the men hostage, preventing them from coming to the two shinobi's aid; not that they would have been much help.

As the first wave of mud spikes were launched at them, Kakashi quickly blocked them with his own Mud Wall, rolling sideways and firing another bout of lightning-infused shuriken at the enemy nin. To his left, Konohamaru was engaging with 6 attackers simultaneously, holding them off using a combination of his Burning Ash Pile jutsu and Kage Bunshin. Knowing that long-range jutsu would be the only way to even out their numerical odds quickly, he resorted to the Uchiha's signature Great Fireball jutsu, while keeping his eye on the enemy leader perched on top of the carriage. The voice that had called out the jutsu previously had sounded vaguely high-pitched, and Kakashi half-wondered if it might be a woman. It didn't matter though. If he took him or her out quickly, there might be a chance that the attack might be called off.

As his giant fireball engulfed the nin below, Kakashi leapt onto the carriage and swung a powerful kick at the lead shinobi's face. Barely even ruffled by Kakashi's sudden appearance next to him, the fully masked shinobi didn't even stop to draw breath, neatly side-stepping the jonin's attack. Spinning away gracefully, they exchanged another set of blows. Kakashi was one of the Elemental Nations' speediest and most proficient taijutsu fighters, but even without the use of a Sharingan, the enemy shinobi was having little trouble matching him punch for punch, kick for kick.

The heated battle wore on, and Kakashi began to grow uneasy. Although he had a height and weight advantage, the two ninja were both evenly matched both speed and skill-wise, and so far he had been unable to find any weakness in his opponent's defence. As he drove another fierce kick forwards, Kakashi watched as the enemy nin suddenly stumbled on a small crack in the wooden surface. His kick connected with the back of his opponent's head, and he staggered wildly, off-balance. Seizing the opportunity to end the contest, Kakashi threw a powerful knockout punch to the side of his face followed by a bone-splintering kick to the chest.

To his horror, the shinobi melted away into a puddle of mud but before he even had time to exclaim, he felt a painful force slam into his back, shattering several of his ribs. Blood and bile rose up his mouth, and it was Kakashi's turn to stagger. The next thing he knew, his body was slammed into the hard earth and he cried out in pain as his broken ribcage was severely jarred by the impact, making him see little white spots behind his eyes. More blood was streaming down his face, soaking his mask and the jonin knew that his nose was probably broken from the fall. A searing pain in his left thigh informed him that he probably had a broken tibia to contend with as well.

Not even giving the horrifically injured shinobi another glance, Kakashi's opponent merely strolled over to where Konohamaru was still battling and lazily, almost casually crooked a finger. "Futon: Kaze no Yaiba."

Kakashi watched the young chunin's body crumple as if in slow motion; the powerful gust of wind slicing mercilessly through Konohamaru as if he were no thicker than paper, leaving large red slashes in its wake. The boy's eyes snapped open in numb disbelief as blood gurgled and gushed out of his mouth, before he fell motionless to the ground.

The remaining survivors of the ambush company yanked open the carriage door and dragged out Kazumi-hime. Her dark eyes were paralysed with terror, and her already pale complexion was now a sweaty, sickly white. She looked so fragile and lifeless at the mercy of the enemy shinobi, trembling so violently her very being was shaking with pure fear.

The enemy leader finally removed his mask and Kakashi started in shock.

It was Kagura.

….

Doton: Doryūheki – Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall

Futon: Kaze no Yaiba – Wind Release: Blade of Wind

Kage Bunshin (no Jutsu) – Shadow Clone (technique)

Kage Shuriken no Jutsu – Shadow Shuriken technique

Katon: Haisekishō – Fire Release: Ash Pile Burning

Mikazuki no Mai - Dance of the Three Days' Moon

Raikiri – Lightning Cutter

Raiton Kage Bunshin – Lightning Shadow Clone

Uzushiagakure – Hidden Eddy Village

**A/N:** As always, reviews and concrit are much loved, they are the very nourishment and encouragement that keep me going x


	4. Ain't Nobody Tell Me This is Love

**Omiai**

_Now I'm crying and deserted baby, but you don't care. Ain't nobody tell me this is love. _

-Beyonce, "I Care"

**Previously:**

_Koharu added, "All of Fire Country will be depending on you to bring Kazumi-hime to her destination safely, Hatake-san." _

…_._

_Gaping a little as she finally spotted what the stony-faced kunoichi was staring at, she frowned. "Is that Kakashi-sensei and his assist…?!"_

"_Let's go, Ino. I don't think I feel like eating sushi tonight after all."_

_Sighing, the blonde cast a suspicious look at the silver-haired jonin currently locking lips with his assistant before hurrying after her rapidly retreating friend._

…_._

A rod of fear speared her heart – _could Kusagakure and Takigakure be that desperate to annihilate Konoha that they would boldly strike at them barely a mile away from the village centre?_

_As Homura steeled herself and gathered her chakra, a rabbit mask peered down at her, stark and eerily white against the dark sky. _

…

_As he stalked out of the room, Sasuke could hear the familiar sound of the kunoichi's stifled sobs as she sank to the floor, her tears staining a wet trail onto the woven mat strips. But even as blinding anger raged white-hot deep within his heart, a small tinge of regret crept over him. _

…_._

"_The leaders are firm in their belief that the minor villages have no place in the Allied Shinobi Forces, and they will likely rather die than surrender and swear allegiance to any of the Big Five Hidden Villages, including Konoha. Replacing and brainwashing village leaders, let alone three are no easy feats. They take time, and money – both of which we are in scarce supply of."_

"_And how sure can we be that you will follow through with whatever you have promised us?" _

_Danzo spent a long time staring into the empty depths of his teacup, before answering. "For starters, you have my permission to plunder all the wagons and carriages that will be coming your way tomorrow. Take everything you want, and leave __**no one**__ but the princess alive."_

* * *

**A/N:** SURPRISE! I felt so loved last chapter (7 reviews!) so I thought I'd give everyone a treat and upload the next chapter three weeks ahead of schedule (yes I did plan on monthly updates because I'm stuck at chapter 10). Dedicated once again to Rezaria, for the most insightful review of the round and a special mention to electrickpanda for being the most enthusiastic reviewer! Thanks also to all the guest reviewers and everyone who faved/alerted.

This is actually my favourite chapter of the entire lot (so far!), so hopefully everyone enjoys it too.

**Chapter 3: Ain't Nobody Tell Me This is Love**

_He doesn't think of me that way._

Sakura sighed heavily as she wandered through Konoha's entertainment district in a semi-haze, tiptoeing and craning her neck for a glimpse of spiky black hair. But it was Friday night, and it seemed like most everyone was out on the town to celebrate the end of the week and payday. The streets were literally heaving with shinobi and villagers alike clutching cups of the Konoha local brew and sticks of takoyaki as they thronged the main streets, heading for the cinema or the many bars and pubs that lined the entire road. Pushing her way past a canoodling couple outside The Dancing Shinobi (she was mortified to see an evidently inebriated Shizune clasped in Shiranui Genma's arms glare at her), Sakura tried to peer through the grimy windows of Konoha's largest pub for the slightest hint of a red and white fan crest, a dark blue shirt with a high upturned collar, a lilac rope belt – but only a mass of unfamiliar faces and green flak jackets greeted her.

Where would any young man go to celebrate his 21st birthday?

With Naruto, the answer was obvious. Teuchi usually gave his best customer free ramen the entire day to celebrate yet another year of unwavering Ichiraku loyalty (six meals a day 365 times a year).

Shikamaru? Probably up on Hokage Mountain where no one could find and disturb him for any "troublesome" birthday parties.

But Sasuke? That was a mystery Sakura had yet to solve.

_He always had a barrier between us. _

Ever since his return to Konoha, Naruto and Sakura had unsuccessfully thrown three surprise birthday parties, and each year the guest of honour had failed to turn up. Sai had only half-jokingly offered to draw a portrait of the Uchiha in his stead so as not to disappoint the hundreds of fangirls that continued turning up year after year, bearing piles of lacy pink teddy bears and mountains of glittery red chocolate boxes.

_What he does is really none of my business._

But Sakura had hoped that this year would be different. It was his first birthday they would be celebrating as a couple, and she had really wanted to do something meaningful for her beau, even if he deliberately went out of his way to avoid her all day.

Their fight yesterday had really sapped the energy and morale out of her, and she'd looked so miserable the whole day Ino had insisted on taking her out to dinner after work. But there was no way Sakura was going to let Sasuke spend the day alone without at least wishing him a happy birthday, even if he had expressly forbade her from going near him.

_It will just take some getting used to._

Stopping outside the imposing high walls and looming presence of the abandoned Uchiha complex, the kunoichi peered nervously into the dark abyss that stretched out beyond her, the broken stone monuments and cracked walls running around her cold and unwelcoming. The silent houses and abandoned rockery gardens looked twice as eerie and forbidding in the gloom of the Konoha nightfall. But the pathway was clean and the small shrubs near the front of the compound were trimmed into perfect little ovals; Sakura knew that Sasuke came here every Sunday morning to sweep the leaves and weed the gardens. Nonetheless, the entire place was bathed in inky darkness and the kunoichi turned away, hoping that the young Uchiha wasn't brooding in a dark corner of some abandoned room.

She continued combing the surroundings, desperately extending her senses for the familiar tingle of his chakra; venturing further and further until she eventually found herself near the outskirts of the village. The road before her wasn't one that shinobi usually frequented unless they were heading for the Land of Tea, and judging from the unbroken blades of grass and lack of footprints, it was unlikely that anybody had set foot here for more than a year. Both physically and emotionally weary, Sakura had already turned to make her way back home when she felt it.

A sense of elation pumping through her, she raced down the little-traversed lane in the opposite direction out of Konoha, feeling the faint throb of chakra grow stronger and more tangible the longer she ran. On and on she went, feet thundering and heart hammering against her chest. It was a clear, starless night and although Sakura found it hard going at first, her eyes eventually adjusted to the semi-dimness.

Ten minutes later, she stopped short. Although the winding path continued sloping downhill and beyond the dark horizon, the strength of Sasuke's chakra signature seemed to be augmented inside the tangle of undergrowth that covered the entirety of the terrain surrounding her. Sakura still couldn't see very clearly and in the darkness, the mass of trees and bushes that surrounded her resembled massive black shapes that towered over the ground and threatened to swallow her underfoot.

She gulped a little, before hesitantly taking one step forward, eyes squeezed involuntarily shut. Hearing nothing but the crackle and snap of dead twigs and leaves, she heaved a sigh of relief and continued pushing her way through the silent forest. The canopy of leaves overhead were not as dense as those in Konoha, so shafts of moonlight still managed to slip through, helping illuminate her way. Nonetheless, she still jumped at any extra loud sounds and when a passing owl swooped overhead, she nearly screamed in fright and tripped over a gnarled tree root beneath her. Yet she continued going deeper and deeper into the forest.

Then, as her trembling fingers brushed aside yet another pine branch, she saw him.

Sasuke was sitting in what appeared to be a small clearing, his back against one of the massive pine trees that surrounded the small lake in the centre; the silvery surface reflecting the soft shimmer of the moon's rays above. Despite cutting a rather desolate figure, there was a certain mystique to the whole scene that was unexplainably alluring. How many times had she fantasised about a mysterious rendezvous with the Uchiha, alone in the middle of the woods below a full moon, with no one to witness the deepest throes of their passion? Yet the longer Sakura looked, the less magical everything seemed to be.

Sasuke's shoulders were uncharacteristically slumped and as she squinted, several empty bottles of presumably some alcoholic drink came into focus, scattered messily around him. For as long as she had known him, Sasuke was almost religious in his discipline when it came to alcohol, often shunning her invitations to The Dancing Shinobi on weekends with the others in favour of early nights in. His eyes were small and bloodshot, and even from a distance the kunoichi could smell the strong stench of sake on his breath. His dark hair was even wilder and more askew than ever, the carefully groomed spikes more closely resembling a crow's nest than the casually cool hairstyle he was often envied for. The set of his jaw was still hard, but as he lifted another bottle of drink to his lips, his fingers shook a little.

In short, he looked like any drunken, despondent wreck crawling on some rich man's doorstep; not at all what one would expect a shinoby prodigy celebrating his coming of age nameday to look like.

She took a deep breath.

_Tell me honestly, Sakura. Why are you still with him?_

_Sasuke needs me._

_And Kakashi doesn't?_

_He doesn't think of me that way, and neither do I. _

_Maybe because you never gave him a chance to!_

_He always had a barrier between us. To him, I will always be that little girl who was in love with Sasuke and he will always be nothing more than a sensei to me. _

_Don't try and lie, Forehead. I know you were upset when you saw him kissing Kagura._

_What he does is really none of my business. He's free to kiss as many girls as he feels like. _

_If that doesn't sound like jealousy, then Shikamaru isn't a lazy ass._

_It will just take some getting used to. _

_And what do you plan to do about it?_

_I'm going to Sasuke. _

Steadying herself, the pinkette slowly walked towards him.

* * *

He had sensed her chakra signature the very minute she had stepped into the forest. Even as an experienced chunin, Sakura, along with many other shinobi still forgot to mask their chakra presence so close to home, never knowing that enemies could be lying in wait for them just outside their doorstep. Itachi used to bring him to the little clearing to train and spar every other evening before he joined ANBU, so Sasuke was vastly familiar with the place. He counted to about 10 minutes before she would reach him.

The raven-haired nin took another swig of sake, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. He swirled the mouthful of liquid in his mouth, letting the bitter taste spread all over his tongue and cloud another part of his gently befuddled mind. He wasn't drunk; Orochimaru and Kabuto's experiments on him over the years had left him with the ability to metabolise most drugs and organic substances quicker than the average shinobi but he still welcomed the dull, numbing sensation that was enveloping every part of his body, letting himself slowly sink into its welcoming depths.

"Otanjobi omedetou."

He lifted a fraction of his head, ignoring the throbbing sensation that accompanied the movement. Her green-eyed gaze was steady, but he caught the slight tremor in her whispered greeting. When he made no move to reply, she hesitated a little before slowly lowering herself to the ground next to him.

They sat in silence for a good few minutes, letting the stillness of their surroundings permeate every one of their senses; the distant croaking of a tree frog, the fresh crispness of the forest air and the rustle of leaves as small animals came out to hunt their nightly prey. It seemed like somewhere where Naruto would come to meditate and train his Sage Mode – somewhere where one could come to be at rest and be one with nature.

"I told you not to come after me," he finally broke the tranquillity they had been sharing, feeling the rough, wooden bark graze his shirt as he leant back. His words were a little slurred, but if not for the drink bottles it would have been hard to discern if the Uchiha was anything more than slightly intoxicated.

"I didn't want you to be alone."

Although she carefully kept her face turned away from him, Sasuke could already see that her eyes were slightly moist around the edges. Feeling another prick of guilt at yesterday's fight, he merely gave another of his familiar grunts. Sometimes he wondered if this was Kami-sama's way of torturing him for his past transgressions- watching someone he cared about suffer for the very crime of loving him. When Danzo had threatened him six months ago to make good on his "sentence" of producing some Uchiha heirs within the next two years, naturally Sakura had been the very first name that ran through his head as he considered the possible options. It would have been an ending straight out of those fairy-tale books he'd liked to read as a child until Fugaku had thrown them all out: Sasuke and the girl who'd waited and loved him patiently throughout the years; through every bloodstain, tear and glory, the handsome prince come back to claim his one true love. They would get married, renovate the Uchiha compound and restore the clan to its former glory by having hundreds of happy little Uchiha babies.

And live happily ever after?

Like Fugaku had once told him, shinobi should not read fairy tales because there were no happy endings in the shinobi world.

Sasuke had tried. After the war was over, Sakura had kept her distance from him for a good few months and he hadn't been surprised. Who wouldn't want to keep a respectful few hundred miles away from someone who had tried to put a Chidori through their heart the last time they'd met? On his part, he felt wrenched with guilt every time he saw her, remembering how close he had been to extinguishing her life with his fistful of lightning at the nadir of his madness. Every time he looked into her eyes, he imagined them closing for the last time as he saw his fist plunging into her chest, blood splattering onto his Chidori covered hand.

So he made excuses every time Naruto tried to invite him to spar with them and avoided Ichiraku like the plague. He locked his apartment door and left early in the morning before the dobe was up. Sakura politely refused to join them whenever she spotted Sasuke skulking behind the blonde and deliberately took up double shifts at the hospital to avoid them. But in typical Naruto fashion, the whiskered boy wouldn't give up; he kept begging Sakura, kept inviting Sasuke and eventually, they both began to thaw. Maybe like Sasuke, she saw how badly Naruto wanted her to talk to him, realised how desperately Naruto wanted them, the only family he had ever known to be reunited, to be Team 7 again – just like the old days.

So Sasuke tried and by the time the anniversary of the Fourth Great Ninja War rolled around one year later, they were speaking again. Short, polite questions on her part and monosyllabic one-word grunts on his: "How are you today, Sasuke" and "Please pass the salt, Sasuke". No more simpering "Sasuke-kun"s and never-ending requests to walk her home after training. The new Sakura was determined, focussed and most unsettling of all: not interested in him.

She arrived to training ten minutes before anyone, sparred for half an hour each with Naruto, Sai and Kakashi and left early after lunch for her shift at the hospital. Then it was dinner with the team and an hour at the library to study some new scroll or book on medical ninjutsu. There was a sort of inner melancholy and quiet detachment to her that was completely at odds with the clingy, whiny girl he had come to associate with his youth. Walking around the village, he heard rumours of how the young kunoichi was on track to surpass the late Godaime as the top medical ninja in the Elemental Nations, and her dedication to her patients were second to none. The villagers saw shades of Tsunade in her, and they loved and respected her all the more.

And little by little, so did he. He never said much to her (that much hadn't changed) but quietly, he admired the way she had applied herself since he fled the village and finally blossomed into a kunoichi worth respecting and from other rumours from the young men of the village, a kunoichi worth chasing after.

Sasuke cared about Sakura. At the very heart of it, she was one of the few people he had been closest to in his youth and although she had been childish, pathetic and downright _annoying_, he'd genuinely meant it when he thanked her that fateful night he left Konoha. But to date her, love her, _marry_ her?

He couldn't do that to her.

He had been the most shocked man in the village when two years after the war ended, she had mumbled an invitation to accompany her to the annual sakura-viewing festival after training one day. They had spent most of it in awkward silence and when Tenten had loudly questioned whether the two of them were dating, Sasuke had cleared his throat while Sakura blushed as red as her kimono and refused to answer the question. After that day, Sakura seemed a little more at ease in his company and although she had subtly hinted that she wouldn't mind spending more time with him alone, he never showed any signs of returning her feelings.

How could he?

Until Danzo came along and reminded him of the promise he'd made to the people of Konoha as part of his "pardon" six months ago.

Even now, three years after the war and more than ten years after the Uchiha massacre he still found himself struggling to come to grips with his feelings. Some days he woke up filled with an inexpressible hatred and resentment, cursing everyone who had the audacity to smile when his brother had died to sacrifice himself for the village. Some nights he would wake up gasping, tears streaming down his cheeks as the ghost of a soft hand would linger on his brow, faint echoes of a whisper to meet her after school for shuriken practice. Other times he just felt this hollow, empty feeling tearing a hole deeper and deeper into his chest, sapping him of morale and energy. Voices whispered in his head, urging him to seek out revenge on Danzo and the elders, reminding him that Itachi had not yet been avenged. Fear preyed on his doubts and insecurities, while desperation alternated with anger as he contemplated his seemingly bleak future under Danzo's tyrannical thumb. Most of the time he bottled it all in, but sometimes like a dormant volcano things just explode and surround everything and everyone with blazing rage and hurtful sayings.

She bore the brunt of it every time, yet she never said a word. She only cried.

Abruptly jolting out of his musings, he realised that Sakura probably mistook his extended silence as further hostility on his part as to her presence. And under ordinary circumstances this would probably be true, but the sake had loosened his tongue more than usual, so he merely asked, "Sakura…why did you ask me to the festival?"

His pink-haired companion looked startled, and confusion clouded her delicate features. "Why?" she repeated slowly, turning the word over and over in her head as her eyes bored into his.

In another uncharacteristically talkative move, he didn't even wait for her to answer. "In fact, why did you even agree to be my girlfriend?" he plunged on recklessly, slapping another bottle of sake to his lips to distract himself from the sudden pounding of his heart.

If her expression just now had been one of curious bemusement, it suddenly became one of wariness. "Sasuke-kun…" he relaxed slightly at the familiar nickname dropping from her lips. She'd gone back to calling him that after they'd got together and somehow, hearing it roll so easily off her tongue brought a little sense of nostalgia to him that he found himself missing. The new Sakura was someone he respected, maybe even admired to a certain degree but she was foreign to him, alien almost.

Lapsing back into a thoughtful silence (another thing he missed about her youthful self; Sakura had often chattered and babbled enough for both of them, so much so that Sasuke had often giving up trying to correct her and resorted to ignoring her), the kunoichi clasped her hands tightly before finally replying, "I actually don't know."

Her reply astonished him.

She continued, "At the time, it seemed the right thing to do."

He glared at her, before reaching for his bottle again. She shot him a quick frown but he ignored her. "You pitied me." The thick metallic band of the chakra restraint around his arm flashed silver in the moonlight, and he tried hard not to let the bitterness seep into his voice.

"Never."

He snorted again, but faced her reluctantly.

"When I say I don't know, it's because there are so many reasons it's impossible to narrow it down." Sasuke watched her swallow a little, before soldiering on. "I just felt like...we both needed each other, in a way. You needed someone, and I wanted to be that person. I've always wanted to be that person," she whispered, her voice trailing off.

"I tried to kill you." A dull edge had crept into his tone.

Sakura sighed. "And I tried to do the same to you. I thought we'd already put this behind us."

"Sakura…" he sighed again. He stared straight at her. "You know I can't give you what you want. This whole…relationship is a mistake I should have never made. Look at yesterday. You always forgive me, but eventually you'll come to hate me for it. You need to get out."

Perhaps it was the length of his reply that dumbfounded her, or simply the fact that it was the most honest he'd been about their relationship in forever.

"I don't hate you…" Tears were sparkling in her eyes again, and Sasuke hated himself all the more for it.

"So what, you love me?" He gave a short, harsh bark of laughter. "You put up with my near abusive behaviour and attempted murder, for what?" The Uchiha heir gave another derisive laugh that was chillingly déjà vu. "So that you can have my babies and help me rebuild my clan, so that we can go and live in our pretty little house and pretend everything is alright?"

He stopped to take another gulp of sake.

She took the opportunity to cut in. "And is that so wrong?" she demanded heatedly, a little of the Sakura temper of old starting to flare up as she glared accusingly at him.

"It's wrong when those babies you want so badly are going to be taken away to be brainwashed by the Foundation and R.O.O.T."

A chilling silence ensued.

Sakura looked as if someone had just slapped her, her face had turned a sickly shade of white.

Sasuke turned away. "It's why I said this whole relationship was one big mistake from the start. When I said I needed a girlfriend to rebuild my clan, I meant it. Only the elders want to rebuild the Uchiha clan according to their sick ways and ideas." His voice was cool and even, but inside he was filled with self-loathing.

"How long have you known this?" the kunoichi whispered.

"From the start." He smiled bitterly. "Although Danzo took care not to mention this in the official statement of judgement. It was supposed to be kept a secret until I had married, but I overheard Koharu and Homura discussing it outside my cell when they thought I was asleep."

She remained motionless.

"So why are you telling me this now?"

Her question was so soft, only a shinobi's heightened hearing ability would have picked it up.

"So that you can get out before it's too late."

Their eyes met again. "I never meant to ask you to be with me, Sakura," he continued, "I never meant for us to get married, start a family and have children. I didn't want you to go through the pain of having those children ripped from you as soon as they were born to be brainwashed into becoming Danzo's slaves."

"Then why did you?" she pressed, her voice stronger now but her eyes were still shocked and fearful.

He paused for a little while, ruminating his answer. Sasuke had never been the most eloquent at expressing his feelings and he already felt that tonight's rare confession had already taken a huge effort on his part to convey so much thought and emotion to her, something he was usually very uncomfortable with.

"I suppose…" he began slowly. "I actually wanted to give us a chance. To see what we could have become if I hadn't left." Hiding his growing blush with a scowl, the young ninja's face then clouded over again. He dropped his voice. "You deserve better than this, Sakura," he urged, even as each word he spoke represented another blow to his pride. "Danzo only wants to ensure that he will continue bending the Uchiha to his will for generations to come."

"And what if I don't care?" Her voice was rough with desperation, and she clutched his hand. "Sasuke-kun, if we don't have children then Danzo won't be able to…"

"He will probably kill you," he replied bleakly. "And force me to marry someone else who will give him Uchiha heirs." Lightly running his thumb over hers, he spoke again, softly and as close to pleading as Uchiha Sasuke could ever get. "You need to get out before Danzo orders me to marry you. He's growing restless and impatient and it won't be long before he comes to me again."

"What does he threaten you with?"

Sasuke didn't answer the question. Instead, he commented lightly, "You spend a lot of time with Kakashi."

With a slight flicker of interest, he noticed how her body went completely rigid at his off-hand statement. "As much time as I spend with you or Naruto," she answered somewhat evasively.

Hoping to correct her assumption that he was jealous, but merely curious, he replied, "I never respected him much when he was our teacher but he's a good person."

This time, it was the pinkette's turn to ignore him. Reaching into her hip pouch, she pulled out a small scroll. "I wanted to give this to you. It's your birthday present."

Secretly touched, the shinobi reached out his hand and gently unfurled it, taking care not to crease or tear the woven cloth. A look of pure surprise crossed his face.

Smiling slightly, Sakura said, "The painter in the village knew your parents. I had him draw a replica of the portrait that he did of your family when you were born."

Gazing down at the black and white painting that Taniga-san had recreated expertly using a mixture of watercolour and charcoal, Sasuke felt a lump catch in his throat. Mikoto was carrying a small bundle embroidered with the Uchiha crest, while Itachi and Fugaku flanked her on either side. While his mother wore a beaming smile on her sweet face, Fugaku looked as stern and proud as Sasuke remembered him. Itachi on the other hand, had placed an arm around the sleeping Sasuke bundle and even from an artist's rendition, there was no mistaking the protective, brotherly air he wore as he gazed fondly at his beloved otouto.

He lost himself in more memories as he continued staring at the portrait, before finally coming to. "Sakura…thank you." And once again, he truly, sincerely meant it from the bottom of his heart.

She chuckled softly. "As long as you don't knock me out this time." Leaning against her own tree, the pair retreated into a quiet contentment and watched the moon's reflection shiver atop the silvery pool.

* * *

"And you're very sure that it was either one of them?"

Koharu bristled a little, feeling slightly annoyed at the bored condescension in Danzo's tone. It seemed like ever since he had been safely installed as Rokudaime Hokage, Danzo didn't feel the need to be anything more than civil to anyone else, even the ones who had elevated him to that lofty position three years ago.

Homura spoke up, "Who else but the heads of the minor villages would want us dead? The other Kage know that a breach of the terms of the Allied Shinobi Forces pact is tantamount to declaring war on the rest of the alliance and risking their entire military wrath."

Koharu narrowed his eyes at the staid man sitting calmly opposite them, bandaged arm lightly resting on the highly polished marble of the Hokage's Desk. One of the first things he'd done upon assuming office was to burn all of Tsunade's existing furniture and give the Hokage's Office an overhaul, claiming that the odour of stale sake befouled the entire place. The large windows overlooking the village were now covered with dark blinds and the entire room was now furnished in the olden, more militant styles of Hokages past. Gone were the large, overflowing piles of mission reports that Koharu used to step on as soon as he set foot in the room and the numerous little cabinets scattered around the circular room which nearly always had a sizeable store of sake stashed inside them, as well as the little figurines and ink paintings that had hung on the walls surrounding them. The room was now grimly spartan in appearance, and where beautiful tapestries of calligraphy had once hung were now posters bearing a single inked kanji, "Fortitude". It was definitely an improvement from the haphazard mess that had characterised Tsunade's reign but even the elderly shinobi felt a little unease at the grim, imposing facade it presented to visitors and clients. "Danzo, surely you've heard the rumours that have been swirling around concerning the minor villages?"

His face remained impassive. "You mean the ones where they mean to band together to raise arms against us? I wouldn't be too worried about those."

"And why not?" Homura exploded, evidently incensed at the lack of reaction or sympathy Danzo was feeling towards their near brush with "death". "If those ANBU hadn't been patrolling the outskirts of the village, you would be two members short on your Council of Elders today! These minor villages mean business, and they won't hesitate to eliminate those they consider a threat. The time for diplomacy has ended, it's time we took a more forceful approach to their growing threat. As soon as Kakashi returns, have him…"

"I don't think that will be necessary," Danzo purred, cutting into the elderly kunoichi's rant mid-way. Enraged further, Homura gave Danzo a dirty look but before she could say anything, Koharu laid a calming hand on her shoulder. He shot Danzo an ominous glare of his own.

"As I was saying," the Hokage continued, standing up from his desk and calmly pacing the room. "You will be pleased to know that I have already taken matters into my own hands. Rest assured that Taki, Kusa, Ishi and the rest of the minor villages will not be bothering Konoha much soon after this."

"And why is that so?" Koharu challenged him, his eyebrows raised in scepticism. "All our past efforts to entreat with them have been rebuffed, and now rumour is they even want to form a rebel alliance to counter us. They insist that The Allied Shinobi Forces seek to conquer all Hidden Villages in the Elemental Nations or eradicate them by fixing mission prices that are much lower and more competitive than what they can offer so that we squeeze them of their livelihood."

Danzo continued pacing calmly. "I have already stated that the matter has been dealt with. I do not wish to discuss it further. Has there been any news on Gousuke-sama regarding this Friday's meeting?" he said, pointedly changing the subject.

Glaring sullenly at their fellow elder and feeling a rising suspicion at his evident secrecy, Koharu grudgingly replied, "As discussed in that meeting with the Daimyo and Kakashi, the contract will be signed as soon as Kazumi-hime is married to Daichi-sama on Thursday."

"Was it wise sending Kakashi to the Land of Water with a mere three-man cell made up of only a jonin, tokubetsu jonin and chunin each?" Homaru joined in, her wrinkled face still knitted together in growing dislike of Danzo. "The contract is extremely important in securing the supply of iron for Konoha's military weaponry needs for the next 10 years. No other lord in Water Country owns as many iron ore deposits as Gousuke-sama, and it is likely that no other lord will be willing to sell it to us at as low a price as he has offered. There have been increasing reports of merchant ships being raided and sunk by mercenaries as well as looting of the port towns along the coast. We cannot afford for this mission to be a failure."

"Are you suggesting that Kakashi is incapable of handling such a momentous task by himself?" the Hokage replied silkily. "I sent him with the best I had on hand. The rest of the jonin are out on missions. Besides," his eyes glittered a little. "Daimyo-sama seemed to think he was up to the job, practically assured me that I need not supplement the squad with any additional shinobi."

"He will be fine, Homura," Koharu reassured her, although a slight doubt continued to plague his thoughts. "Kakashi's our best jonin and he's done dozens of escort missions before. If anything, Gousuke-sama has already said that he'll be sending his own battalion of Kiri shinobi to meet them at the borders of Water."

"It is only Tuesday," Danzo shrugged. "Surely we would have heard from Gousuke-sama if something had gone amiss?"

Koharu opened his mouth to argue, but the door was suddenly flung open. A panting Izumo bowed hastily before thrusting a scroll onto the marble desk. "Urgent news, Hokage-sama. It's from Kakashi-san."

Exchanging a darkly significant look, the elders looked on expectantly and with more than a touch of nervousness as Danzo calmly opened the message, his eyes rapidly scanning its contents.

His face betraying no signs of emotion, he looked up at the two of them. "Kazumi-hime has been killed."

* * *

**A/N**: Anyone saw that coming? Hopefully it wasn't too melodramatic. Again, reviews and more importantly, concrit are MUCH loved and appreciated. Things are really starting to heat up, so hopefully no one's too confused! Don't hesitate to speak up if you need to clear up any plot points! There are several plot lines moving along in parallel and things are only going to get darker and more interesting from here on.

librastar x

Otanjobi omedetou – Happy birthday

Otouto – Little brother

Ishigakure (Ishi) – Hidden Stone Village

Kirigakure (Kiri) – Hidden Mist Village

Kusagakure (Kusa) – Hidden Grass Village

Takigakure (Taki) – Hidden Waterfall Village

Tanigakure (Tani) – Hidden Artisans Village


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